SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- Sarah Scott, Alissa Hawes and Yemayma Molina all reached double figures in kills as Western New England University defeated the Mount Holyoke College volleyball team 3-0 (25-20, 25-17, 25-21) in a non-conference match Friday night in Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium.
Scott led all players with 14 kills on 34 attempts (.294), Hawes had 13 kills on 32 attempts (.219), and Molina added 10 kills on 23 attempts (.304), as the Golden Bears attacked at a .231 match as a team. Scott added 13 digs and two blocks, Hwes tallied 11 digs, and Molina had a match-high four blocks.
WNEU (12-8) received 35 assists, four kills and 12 digs from Hailey Sell, and five kills and 10 digs from Liz Long in the win.
Mount Holyoke (6-9) senior Mar Simon (Miami, Fla.) led the Lyons with six kills to go with nine digs, and sophomore libero Lucie Berclaz (Hull, Mass.) had a match-high 26 digs.
Senior captain McKenna Crosby (Jonesborough, Tenn.) had five kills on 16 attempts (.250) and two blocks, while first-year Elle Rimando (Mililani, Hawaii) had four kills on 10 attempts (.300) and a team-high three blocks (2 solo).
The first set was closely contested, with no more than two points separating the teams except at 17-14 and 21-18 in WNE's favor before a final surge gave the Golden Bears the win. The Lyons trailed 22-20 after a block by Crosby and senior Marion Abeja (Kumi, Uganda), but back-to-back kills by Molina made it 24-20, and WNE took the 1-0 lead after a Mount Holyoke attack error.
WNE led 17-16 in the second set before reeling off six points in a row for a 23-16 lead, with Zoe Bozzay serving. Molina had two kills in the decisive 6-0 run, which ended with a Bozzay service error. The Golden Bears earned a sideout and clinched the set with back-to-back kills by Scott, and the Golden Bears led 2-0.
The third set followed a similar pattern as the first two, with WNE pulling away from a close score late. The score was tied at 17-17 after a kill by Rimando and a Hawes attack error, and the Lyons trailed 20-19 after another Hawes attack error. Hawes gave the Golden Bears breathing room with a kill, and then a bad Lyons set and a Molina kill made it 23-19, prompting Mount Holyoke's final timeout of the night. Crosby served with the Lyons trailing 24-21, and Molina put down her final kill to clinch the win.
Mount Holyoke next competes at Springfield College in a NEWMAC match starting at 7pm on Tuesday.
