Wellesley, Mass. – September 15, 2012 – The Springfield College women’s volleyball team lost a four-set battle to rival Wellesley College in a rematch of the 2011 NEWMAC Championship on Saturday afternoon in Keohane Sports Center.

The win boosts the Blue’s record to 9-0, 2-0 in NEWMAC play, while Springfield drops to 1-1 in the NEWMAC, 7-3 overall.

Wellesley opened a 14-8 lead in set one on a five-point serving run from Vivian Hu. Three plays later, Traci Hamanaka scored four more, stretching the Blue’s lead to 19-10. The Pride mustered a late surge, capitalizing on Wellesley errors and three kills from Kerry Purcell, but the hosts held on for a 25-20 win.

Game two followed a similar script, as Wellesley built a 16-9 advantage midway through the set. Springfield rallied, using tough serving from Lindsay Runge and solid hitting from Tessa Smolinski to trim the lead to 23-19. But Wellesley answered with late kills from Courtney Lang and Lindsey Menichella to finish the game 25-21.

The Pride rebounded in game three, building a 16-10 lead with solid serving from Amy Entel and Molly Giannattasio. Wellesley could not respond, as Springfield cruised to a 25-14 victory.

Midway through the fourth set, with a 13-11 lead, Wellesley took over the match. The Blue scored 12 of the next 15 points, including three kills from Sydney Carfagno, to seal the 25-14, 3-1 win.

Smolinski led the visitors at the net, racking up 14 kills on 44 attempts, while Purcell added 10 kills from the right. Daniella Crismani chipped in nine kills to go along with a match-high 19 digs. Giannattasio and Whitney Miller shared the setting duties for the Pride, combining for 36 assists in the loss.

Carfagno led the Blue with 14 kills, 11 digs, and four blocks. Jessica Mullen added 10 kills and two blocks, while Lang tallied nine kills on just 20 attempts for a .400 hitting percentage. Isabel Custodio notched another double-double, racking up 22 assists and ten digs to go along with five kills. Menichella was particularly effective off the bench for the Blue, recording a match-high five blocks for the Blue.

Both squads return to action Tuesday at 7pm, when Springfield hosts MIT and Wellesley hosts Coast Guard.