For Immediate Release
November 8, 2007
NCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball
Courtesy of Mindy Brauer, MIT Sports Information
Wellesley Downs Endicott in First Round of NCAA Playoffs
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - No. 4 Wellesley College defeated No. 5 Endicott College, 30-18, 30-25, 30-26, in an NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball New England Regional match on Thursday. The Blue (28-6) will face either No. 1 MIT or No. 8 Maine Maritime Academy at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The Gulls close the season with a 26-11 record.
Trailing 4-3 in the opening frame, a kill by Jessica Duff sparked a 14-4 run by Wellesley. Endicott could not overcome the large deficit as the Blue cruised to victory.
The second stanza was a back-and-forth affair, featuring 11 ties and six lead changes. The Gulls slowly inched out to a 9-5 advantage behind a five-point serving run from Brittany Nolan. Wellesley quickly evened the contest, but Endicott countered by scoring six out of the next eight points (15-11). Lauren Rasmussen's strike sparked a 5-1 spurt that evened the frame at 16. After exchanging points on the next five serves, the Gulls regained the lead at 19-18 with a hit from Amy Grigg. The Blue responded by recapturing the advantage and establishing its largest margin thus far (23-20). Endicott stormed back with four straight points before Wellesley closed out the game by winning six of the final seven points.
The early stages of the third game were much like the previous frame as neither team established a lead of more than two. Facing a one-point deficit (13-12), Duff's hit tied the match for the Blue, which was followed by an ace by Rasumussen ace that helped power it to an 18-13 advantage. Endicott struggled to narrow the gap as Wellesley held on for the win.
Alice Cummings paced the Blue with 14 kills and a .407 hitting performance while Murielle Dawdy posted 12 kills and three blocks. Emily Peters anchored the defense with 12 digs as Rasmussen tallied four aces. Billie Briones and Victoria Peng shared setting duties, finishing with 24 and 16 assists, respectively.
Hayley Janelle led Endicott with 10 kills and a .474 hitting percentage as Brittany Phillips bolstered the attack with nine kills. Meghan Hall distributed 25 assists while Steph Wiese collected 10 digs.
