Box Score Cambridge, Mass. - September 18, 2015 - The Springfield College women's volleyball team dropped a five-set match at MIT on Saturday afternoon in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play. The Engineers prevailed by the scores of 25-18, 24-26, 21-25, 25-18, 15-8.
Today's contest pitted two of the top teams in the region against one another. The Pride entered the match ranked No. 1 in New England according to this week's New England Women's Volleyball Association (NEWVA) Regional Poll, while MIT was ranked third. Springfield falls to 9-2, 1-1 in league play, while the Engineers are now 10-1, 2-0.
Kelsey McGayhey (Shelter Island, N.Y.) led the Springfield attack with 17 kills at a .325. Lauren Holt (Granby, Conn.) tallied nine blocks and Marnae Mawdsley (Bolton, Conn.) produced 22 of Springfield's 43 assists to go along with three aces as the Pride was limited to a .148 hitting percentage. Jennifer Hurwitz (Longmeadow, Mass.) was credited with a career-best 25 digs.
After just 15 reception errors in the last five matches combined, Springfield fell victim to 14 MIT service aces in the setback.
MIT inched out to a 15-9 lead in the opening set courtesy of back-to-back kills from Megan Gebhard. The Pride responded with a 5-1 run that featured two McGayhey kills, and after an exchange of points ensued, the Engineers closed out the frame with their own 5-1 spurt as a block by Gebhard and senior Meryl Gibbs gave the hosts a 25-18 win.
In the second stanza, Springfield established a 12-8 margin after capitalizing on a pair of errors and a block by sophomore
Kayleigh Helgesen (Oceanside, Calif.) and Holt. Miscues helped the Cardinal and Gray even the score at 13 but Springfield gradually built a 21-18 cushion. Two kills by Gebhard along with strikes from Gibbs and sophomore Alli Davanzo resulted in MIT taking its first lead of the set at 22-21. Following a timeout by the Pride, both sides traded points until back-to-back hitting errors secured the 26-24 victory for Springfield.
The third set was a back-and-forth affair as it featured 13 ties and seven lead changes. Trailing 17-16, two kills from freshman
Hayley Kmetz (Ardsley, N.Y.) sparked a 6-1 Pride run that was capped by a block from senior
Elise Brogan (Andover, Mass.) and Helgesen. A kill by Gebhard kept the Engineers close, however, an exchange of points followed as a block by McGayhey and Holt clinched the set at 25-21.
The early stages of the fourth frame were closely played until a kill and two aces by Gebhard along with a pair of Springfield errors gave MIT a 12-8 lead. The Pride claimed five of the next seven points to stay close, as a miscue brought it within 14-13. The Engineers replied with a 7-1 run that saw sophomore Lisette Tellez ripped two aces while Gibbs and Gebhard both chipped in two kills. The comfortable cushion would hold as a ball-handling error and a Gibbs strike sent the match into the decisive fifth set.
MIT carried the momentum into the final session as it raced out to a 4-1 lead. Springfield battled back, tying the score at five on a hitting error and a Helgesen-Holt block. Both teams went on to trade points before a service error put the Engineers up, 8-7, at the changeover. MIT wasted little time once action resumed as it closed out the match with a 7-1 run, powered by two aces from junior Jennie Glerum.
Gebhard was dominant on the win as she amassed a match-high 31 kills to go along with five blocks and two aces. Tori Wuthrich amassed 25 digs and added two aces for the Engineers while Tellez tallied 19 digs, nine kills, and three aces. Gibbs finished with 10 kills, Davanzo posted eight kills and five blocks, and Glerum earned five aces on the day. Freshman Fiona Tanuwidjaja dished out a match-high 60 assists in the win.
Springfield will play another critical league match on Tuesday when it travels to take on Babson for a 7:00 pm contest.
