Northampton, Mass. – October 3, 2023 – The Springfield College women's volleyball team bounced back from dropping the opening set to pull away with a four-set win at Smith College in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) clash on Tuesday night.  The Pride prevailed by the scores of 22-25, 25-18, 25-14, 25-22. 

Winners of its last 12 matches, Springfield is now 16-1, 5-0 in NEWMAC play, while Smith is 10-6, 4-1.  Springfield continued to move up in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA)/TARAFLEX Division III national poll and continued its best start to a season since 2011.

Tori Colosimo (Fairport, N.Y.) stuffed her stat sheet with 37 assists, five blocks, five digs, three aces, and three kills in directing the Pride's offense, while Natalie Billet (Commack, N.Y.) turned in a match-best 13 kills.  Riley Donahue (South Windsor, Conn.) contributed 10 kills and Ally Townsend (Hummelstown, Pa.) tallied a match-high 18 digs. 

In the opening frame, Smith pounded out 17 kills at a .400 clip.  Despite facing an impressive offensive performance from the hosts, Springfield would go back-and-forth with the Pioneers in a frame that was tied nine times, the last coming at 21-all on a kill from Maeve Voltz (Bay Shore, N.Y.).  However, Smith would score the next three points en route to the 25-22 win.

Smith committed 10 attack errors in the second as it hit -.111 in the stanza as Springfield was able to break open a one-point lead with a 5-2 push that forced the hosts into a timeout at 16-11.  The Pride pulled away late for the 25-18 triumph to knot the match up at a set apiece.

Springfield used the momentum of taking the second to dominate the third set in a 25-14 win.  Getting three kills from Voltz, Billet, and Olivia Nealy (Athens, Ga.), as well as four from Donahue, Springfield hit .458 and used a 16-6 burst midway through the frame to take a 2-1 advantage.

Behind tough serving from Townsend, Springfield scored the first four points of the fourth as the Pioneers called for an early timeout.  The Pride's cushion would balloon to a 22-13 lead after a big swing from Nealy, but Smith would make one last push to get within 23-20 as Springfield burned a pair of timeouts.  Out of the break, Voltz would score in transition, setting up Billet's sixth kill of the stanza to seal the 25-22 score. 

Springfield will play again on Tuesday night when it hosts Coast Guard at 7 pm. 

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