Norton, Mass. - September 30, 2014 - After dropping the opening set, the Springfield College women's volleyball team regrouped to defeat Wheaton College in four sets on Tuesday evening in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play.

Springfield, which won by the scores of 21-25, 25-18, 25-14, 25-15, now stands at 10-4 on the season, 4-2 in league play. Wheaton evens its record to 8-8, while suffering its first league loss to fall to 3-1 in NEWMAC action.

Francesca Mack (Amston, Conn.) totaled a team-best 12 kills in the win, while Lauren Holt (Granby, Conn.) delivered nine kills at a .533 clip to go along with a match-high six blocks.  Kelsey McGayhey (Shelter Island, N.Y.) tallied seven kills and Meghan Kinee (Williamstown, N.J.) was credited with 17 digs in the four-set win. 

After missing the last three matches, Whitney Miller (Cuba, N.Y.) returned to the lineup and joined Marnae Mawdsley (Bolton, Conn.) to direct the offense as they combined for 34 assists.  Springfield tied a season high of 12 team blocks in the victory, with Amanda Palladino (Cheshire, Conn.) notching five off the bench.

Junior co-captain Deirdre Wilson (Aptos, Calif.) recorded her fourth triple-double of the season with 14 kills, 18 assists and 20 digs. Classmate Kendall Jacobs (San Diego, Calif.) chipped in with 10 kills, five digs and a service ace and sophomore Caitlin Hellebrand (Corona, Calif.) tallied 17 assists.

In set one, Springfield jumped out to an early 8-4 lead, before the Lyons grabbed three-straight points to pull within one at 8-7. Jodi Katz (Needham, Mass.) then tallied a service ace and Jacobs hammered home a kill to push Wheaton ahead 11-10, midway through the first set. Both teams traded points over the next few plays, but then O. Wilson gave control back to the Lyons as her six serves and Jacobs' two swings gave the hosts seven-straight points and a 23-17 advantage. The Pride climbed back, but it wasn't enough as Wheaton took the first set 25-21.

The Lyons grabbed an early 8-4 lead in the second set after a service ace and an attacking error by Springfield. Trading points back and forth until midway through the second set, Wheaton held a 14-9 differential on the scoreboard after Hellebrand set up D. Wilson's kill. The Pride rallied to take the final 16 of 20 points to win 25-18, knotting the match at 1-1.  McGayhey and Holt piloted the offense with seven combined kills.

The third frame began much like the second set concluded. The Pride opened on a 6-2 run as a pair of kills from Mack and Kerry Purcell (Massapequa, N.Y.) put Wheaton behind early. The Blue and White struggled to maintain pace with Springfield as the Pride pulled away to take the third set 25-14.

In the final set of the evening, the Pride jumped out with a 9-3 run after kills by Jennifer Hurwitz (Longmeadow, Mass.) and McGayhey. A service ace and a kill from Jacobs and a putaway from D. Wilson pulled the hosts within three points at 9-6, but Springfield matched Wheaton's run with a 16-9 run to close out the match.

Springfield will not play again until next Tuesday when it hosts Clark at 7:00 pm in Blake Arena.