Western New England Comes up Short in Losses to Amherst & Emerson

Matthews leads Golden Bears with 16 kills over the two matches

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (September 8, 2018) – The Western New England University volleyball team hosted Amherst College and Emerson College for a tri-match on Saturday afternoon at the Alumni Healthful Living Center. The Golden Bears fell to Amherst, 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-14) in the first match of the day, before dropping their second match to Emerson, 3-0 (25-21, 25-14, 26-24).

Amherst 3, WNE 0

Top Performers
Junior outside hitter Ashley Matthews (Salem, N.H.) paced Western New England with eight kills against the Mammoths, while senior Jenna Ferguson (Ellington, Conn.) hit .278 with six kills and sophomore setter Jenna McCormack (Nashua, N.H.) distributed 22 assists. Defensively, freshman Kiana Turner (South Hadley, Mass.) finished with a team-high 14 digs.

Amherst was led by sophomore outside hitter Jamie Dailey (Newport Coast, Calif.), who produced a match-best 15 kills (.400) to go with eight digs. Junior setter Charlotte Duran (Newport Beach, Calif.) compiled 37 assists and seven digs, while senior libero Hayes Honea (Redondo Beach, Calif.) totaled 18 digs.

Game Review
Western New England got off to a strong start in the opening set, as the Golden Bears won the first five points and led 13-9 following a kill by junior Cassandra Holmes (Ellington, Conn.). Amherst used a 5-0 spurt to pull ahead (14-13), however, and the Mammoths pulled away down the stretch, closing out the frame with a 7-1 run.

The visitors established a 7-3 advantage in the second set and never looked back, expanding their lead late to post a 25-12 triumph.

Western New England kept the third frame close early, as the Golden Bears trailed by just three (13-10) after a kill by Matthews midway through the set. Amherst stretched its lead to seven (17-10) with a 4-0 run, however, and the Mammoths went on to claim a 25-14 win to complete the sweep.

Emerson 3, WNE 0

Top Performers
Matthews had another strong showing against the Lions with eight kills and seven digs, while sophomore Toni Fiore (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) recorded a team-high nine kills and Turner tallied 14 digs.

Emerson was powered by freshman outside hitter Carolyn Vaimoso (Torrance, Calif.), who turned in a double-double performance with a match-high 17 kills (.316) and 12 digs.

Game Review
Western New England used an early 4-0 run in the first set to grab the lead (4-2), and the Golden Bears stayed in front until Emerson tied the frame 12-12 on a kill by sophomore Grace Tepper (Kensington, Md.). The Lions took control late in the set with the help of a 4-0 run that gave the visitors a 20-15 edge. Western New England was unable to recover as Emerson took a 1-0 lead in the match. 

In set two, the Lions hit a match-best .407 with 15 kills and just four errors in 27 attempts en route to a 25-14 victory.

Western New England led 17-12 in the third frame, but Emerson posted a 7-1 run to knot the score at 20-20 before eventually escaping with a 26-24 win to seal the match.

Up Next
Western New England (0-7) will look to pick up its first win of the 2018 campaign on Tuesday night at Elms College.