THE MATCHUP: Mount Holyoke hosts Bay Path College and Mills College for a tri-match on Saturday at the Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium. After facing off against Mills at 10:00 a.m., the Lyons will meet up with Bay Path at 2:00 p.m. The remaining match will feature Bay Path and Mills at noon. Mount Holyoke has been perfect in three previous contests against Bay Path. Last fall, outside hitter Martina Kneifel racked up 13 kills, 10 digs and four service aces to lead the Lyons to a 3-0 triumph. They have never competed against Mills, which has made its way to Western Massachusetts from Oakland, California. The Cyclones opened their roadtrip with a 3-0 win over Elms College on Thursday before falling 3-0 at Smith College last night. Match Program
THE WILDCATS: Bay Path (7-6, 1-0 NECC) has rolled to seven wins in its last nine contests. The Wildcats have been led by Nadine Harkless, who has delivered 2.88 kills and 3.14 digs per set to go with 24 service aces.
THE CYCLONES: Mills (3-8) is in the midst of its first season competing at the NCAA Division III level after transitioning from the NAIA. Setter Jessica Lord and middle blocker Julia Harencar have set the tone for the Cyclones.
THE LYONS: Mount Holyoke (5-4, 1-3 NEWMAC) has been hot of late, earning victories in four of its last six contests. The Lyons fell 3-0 on Tuesday after rolling to 3-0 victories over Elms College and Castleton State College on Saturday. They have been paced by outside hitter Martina Kneifel, who has delivered 3.15 kills and 2.85 digs per set while serving up 20 aces. Setters Alison Chu and Mollyanne Fitzpatrick have combined for 200 assists. Meanwhile, libero Kaleen Iwema has racked up 3.77 digs per set. Mount Holyoke has also received solid production from outside hitter Kathryn Brummer, who has posted 1.54 kills and 2.11 digs per set. Brummer and middle hitter Tyler Protano-Goodwin have collected 15 blocks apiece.
NEXT UP: Mount Holyoke will resume its NEWMAC schedule on Tuesday, when it visits Clark University for a match beginning at 7:00 p.m. Bay Path is slated to host NECC foe Newbury College on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. Meanwhile, Mills will return to the west coast to face off against Pacific Union College on Thursday at 7:00 p.m.
