For Immediate Release
September 11-12, 2008
Wellesley Sports Information
Wellesley Volleyball Quad
Final Standings
Wellesley, 2-1
Amherst, 2-1
Johns Hopkins, 2-1
Wesleyan, 0-3
Match #1 -- 9/11, 6:00 p.m. -- Wellesley 3, Wesleyan 1 (25-27, 25-22, 25-8, 28-26)
Wellesley volleyball evened its record at 1-1 this evening with a 3-1 win over Wesleyan University in round one of the Wellesley Quad Tournament. With the loss, Wesleyan starts its season 0-1.
The visiting Cardinals took control early in set one, taking advantage of Wellesley errors to build a 7-4 lead. The Blue tied the game at 10, and the match settled into a sideout affair. Wellesley snagged a 25-24 lead late in the set, but Wesleyan's Alissa Santucci (Syosset, NY) tallied three straight points to take the game, 27-25.
The Cards grabbed an early edge in set two as well, but Wellesley rallied to take a 10-8 lead. The Blue gradually opened a 22-17 gap, and held on to take the set 25-22. Set three proved to be all Wellesley, as the hosts leaped out to a 15-4 lead and cruised to a 25-8 win and a 2-1 lead in the match.
Wesleyan turned the table in the fourth set, using solid serving from Ruby Hernandez (West Palm Beach, FL) to open a commanding 6-0 lead. Wellesley battled back with solid blocking and smart transition hitting, finally inching to a 19-18 edge. Two sideouts later, Hernandez went on another serving run, bringing the Cardinals to game-point, 24-21. But clutch defense from Wellesley led to three straight points, tying the set at 24-24. A three-point serving run from Isabel Custodio (Powell, OH) then sealed the 28-26 come-from-behind win, giving the Blue their first win of the season.
Middle hitter Ashley Farrow (Evanston, IL) led the Cardinal attack with 17 kills and only one error in 23 attempts, for a hitting percentage of .696. Casey Reed (Manhattan Beach, CA) added nine kills for the visitors, while Santucci chipped in six. Hernandez led all players with 23 digs, and Ellie Healey (Manhattan Beach, CA) distributed 37 assists in the loss.
The Blue were led by Elizabeth Campbell (Solona Beach, CA) and Alice Cummings (Tallahassee, FL), with 12 and 10 kills, respectively. Custodio and Madeleine Brumley (Lafayette, LA) added eight kills each, while Taylor King totaled seven kills and six blocks. Naomi Iwata (Seattle, WA) led the Blue with 20 digs, while Cummings and Campbell added 19 and 18 digs each. Custodio and Victoria Peng shared setting duties for the Blue, tallying 22 and 17 assists in the win.
Match #2 -- 9/11, 8:00 p.m. -- Amherst 3, Johns Hopkins 2 (23-25, 25-8, 21-25, 26-24, 20-18)
In a marathon nightcap on the first day of the Wellesley Quad Invitational, Amherst outlasted Johns Hopkins to snag a 3-2 win. The victory gives Amherst a 1-0 record to start the season. The Blue Jays drop to 3-1.
Johns Hopkins took the opening set after jumping out to a 10-3 lead. The Blue Jays widened the gap to 23-14 and held off a late Amherst charge to take the set 25-23. Set two was all Amherst, as the Jeffs scored early and often to take a 17-4 advantage before cruising to a 25-8 win.
The Blue Jays rebounded in game three, 25-21, for a 2-1 lead in the match, but Amherst snagged a hard-fought fourth game, 26-24, tying the match at 2-2. In the fifth and deciding set, the Jeffs took a 7-3 lead. Johns Hopkins climbed back into the game, tying the score at 10-10 before edging to a 14-13 lead. Amherst then fought off five match points before scoring three straight to take the game 20-18.
Alex Zenoff (San Francisco, CA) led the Blue Jay attack with 13 kills. KC Stingl (Mission Viejo, CA) tallied 20 digs for Hopkins, while Becky Paynter (Columbia, MD) dished out 35 assists in the loss.
The Jeffs were led by Katherine Kanoff (Pacific Palisades, CA) with 20 kills. Cristy Maier (San Anselmo, CA) and Emily Waterhouse (Sherman Oaks, CA) added 12 and seven kills, respectively. Defensively, Rachel Yorke (Los Angeles, CA) led all players with 27 digs, while Laura Hyman (Glencoe, IL) racked up 12 blocks. Kate Jordan (Los Altos Hills, CA) distributed 52 assists in the win.
The Blue Jays return to the court at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow to face host Wellesley College. Amherst will play Wesleyan at noon.
Match #3 -- 9/12, 10:00 a.m. -- Johns Hopkins 3, Wellesley 2 (25-27, 19-25, 25-20, 25-15, 15-11)
Day two of the Wellesley Quad opened with an exciting five-set, come-from-behind win for Johns Hopkins. After dropping the first two games, the visiting Blue Jays took the next three to lift their overall record to 4-1. Wellesley falls to 1-2.
Set one remained even throughout the early rallies, as neither team could gain an advantage until Johns Hopkins used two short serving runs to take an 18-14 lead. Three rallies later, the hosts responded with a run of their own to tie the game at 21-21, then closed the set with tough defense, 28-26. Wellesley carried the momentum into set two, taking an early 8-5 advantage. The Blue Jays stayed close, but serving runs from Madeleine Brumley (Lafeyette, LA) and Elizabeth Campbell (Solona Beach, CA) gave Wellesley a 24-18 lead. Two sideouts later, the Blue took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-19 win.
Johns Hopkins opened set three with a 7-4 edge, but Wellesley closed the gap quickly and took 13-12 lead halfway through the game. The Blue Jays then capitalized on several Blue serving and hitting errors in the second half of the game to take the set 25-20. Set four belonged to the Blue Jays, as they used tough serving and a quick middle attacks from Alex Zenoff (San Franciso, CA) and Melissa Cole (Walnut, CA) to take a commanding 15-4 lead before cruising to 25-15 win. With the match tied at 2-2, John Hopkins edged to an 8-5 lead in the deciding set and held on for a 15-11 win.
Becky Paynter (Columbia, MD) guided a well-balanced Blue Jay offense with 29 assists. Zenoff led Johns Hopkins with eight kills, while Cole, Ali Capellaere (Ellicott City, MD), and Brittany Zimmer (Melville,NY) tallied seven kills each.
Alice Cummings (Tallahassee, FL) led the Blue with 17 kills while recording 14 digs. Campbell notched 14 kills, and Isabel Custodio (Powell, OH) chipped in eight. Senior libero Naomi Iwata (Seattle, WA) recorded a career-high 34 digs in the loss.
Match #4 -- 9/12, 12:00 p.m. -- Wesleyan, 2 Amherst 3 (22-25, 21-25, 25-22, 26-24, 14-16)
Game two of the Wellesley Quad proved to be another exciting match as Amherst downed Wesleyan in the final moments of the 5th game. Amherst jumps to a 2-0 record on the season while Wesleyan falls to 0-2 with the loss.
Wesleyan immediately pushed a side out in the opening match, racking up 4 points before the Jeffs could attack again. The Cardinals were leading 9-5 until Amherst's Laura Yim (San Mateo, CA) closed the gap with three consecutive points to make it a close 9-8. Wesleyan held the lead until Amherst pulled ahead 18-16 in the second half of the game. The Jeffs pulled out a 25-22 win as Junior Erin Camp (Santa Monica, CA) served the winning point.
Wesleyan would immediately jump ahead again in set two, but the Jeffs bounced back to command the lead for the remainder of the set. Junior Rachel Yorke's (Los Angeles, CA) serving rally sparked a 20-16 lead, and the Jeffs sailed to a 25-21 win over the Cardinals.
Down 0-2, Wesleyan battled back to take sets three and four from the Jeffs. Wesleyan's Alissa Santucci (Syosset, NY) started set three with four consecutive serves, grabbing a quick 5-1 lead over Amherst. Wesleyan would dominate the lead for the rest of the set, downing the Jeffs 25-22. The Cardinals would again outlast Amherst in set four while dominating the lead and notching a 26-24 win over the Jeffs. In the deciding set, Amherst pushed through for a 16-14 win to take the match.
Amherst's Katherine Kanoff (Pacific Palisades, CA) notched an impressive 23 kills and 17 digs while Junior Katherine Jordan (Los Altos Hills, CA) led the Jeffs in assists, picking up 45 in the win.
Wesleyan's Casey Reed (Manhattan Beach, CA) racked up a game high 18 kills while Senior Ellie Healy (Manhattan Beach, CA) added 51 assists in the match.
The Cardinals hit the court again at 2:00 PM as they take on Johns Hopkins University. The Jeffs will take on the Wellesley Blue at 4:00 PM to conlcude the Wellesley Quad.
Match #5 -- 9/12, 2:00 p.m. -- Johns Hopkins, 3 Wesleyan 1 (23-25, 25-20, 25-17, 28-26)
Johns Hopkins finished the Wellesley Quad with a solid 3-1 win over the Wesleyan Cardinals. The Blue Jays improve their record to 5-1 while Wesleyan falls to 0-3 on the season.
In set one, Johns Hopkins advanced first with three consecutive points served by Freshman Becky Paynter (Columbia, MD). The Blue Jays' lead would not last, however, as Cardinals sophomore Alissa Santucci (Syosset, NY) rallied seven consecutive serves to take an 8-3 lead. Johns Hopkins' Junior Lesley Faulkner (Middletown, CT) rallied the Blue Jays to only a one point deficit, but the Cardinals held on to the lead eventually grabbing a 25-23 win.
In sets two and three, the Blue Jays dominated the court beating Wesleyan 25-20 and 25-17. In set two, the Blue Jays held an impressive rally as Junior KC Stingl (Mission Viejo, CA) served eight consective points to notch a 20-16 lead. Johns Hopkins would command the lead to solidify a 25-20 win. In set three, Wesleyan captured an early 5-3 lead until the Blue Jays jumped ahead 11-7. The Blue Jays maintained the lead for the remainder of the set, winning 25-17.
Set four proved to be the most exciting set of the match. Both teams battled back and forth until Johns Hopkins' Alex Zenoff (San Francisco, CA) rallied the Blue Jays to a 28-26 match win.
Johns Hopkins' Freshman Becky Paynter (Columbia, MD) had an impressive showing tallying 5 aces, 20 digs, and 22 assists. Senior Allison Cappelaere (Ellicott City, MD) added 17 kills to the match as well.
Wesleyan's Ruby Hernandez (West Palm Beach, FL) notched 43 digs and 4 aces while teammate Casey Reed (Manhattan Beach, CA) added 17 digs and 15 kills in the loss.
Wesleyan will be back in action against Keene State on Wednesday at 7:00PM. The Blue Jays will take on Hood College on Tuesday at 7:00 PM.
Match #6 -- 9/12, 4:00 p.m. -- Wellesley 3, Amherst 0 (25-22, 25-21, 25-21)
In the final match of the Wellesley Quad Tournament, the hosts defeated Amherst College, 3-0 (25-22, 25-21, 25-21). With the win, Wellesley evens its season record at 2-2. Amherst drops to 2-1.
The opening set was even, with neither squad gaining an edge, until Amanda Duritsch's (Troy, OH) serve sparked a four-point run for the Blue, giving her team a 17-15 lead. Four rotations later, the Jeffs tied the game at 22-22, but Wellesley grabbed the next three points for a 25-22 win.
Set two followed a similar script, as neither team could break away in the first half of the game. But with the score knotted at 16, the Blue went on a four-point run led by two kills from Elizabeth Campbell (Solona Beach, CA). Wellesley held on for a 25-21 win and a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Blue maintained the momentum into set three taking an 8-4 lead early in the game. Another burst of points stretched the Wellesley lead to 16-9. And despite a late charge from the Jeffs, the Blue held on for a 25-21 win.
Christy Meier (San Anselmo, CA) led the visitors with 12 kills, and Katherine Kanoff (Pacific Palisades, CA) added eight. Rachel Yorke (Los Angeles, CA) anchored the Amherst defense with 24 digs, while Callie Nelson (Escondido, CA) recorded 17 assists in the loss.
Alice Cummings (Tallahassee, FL) notched her fourth double-double in four matches this season, racking up 13 kills and 10 digs. Campbell added 12 kills, and Isabel Custodio (Powell, OH) and Jenna Watson (Vancouver, WA) chipped in five each. Custodio and Victoria Peng (Diamond Bar, CA) combined for 40 assists in the win.
The Blue return to action Tuesday, September 15, when they host Mount Holyoke in 7:00 p.m. conference match.