Golden Bears Come Back to Defeat UNE 3-1

BIDDEFORD, Maine (October 5, 2021) – The Golden Bear volleyball team continued conference play against University of New England earlier this evening where the Golden Bears pulled off  a three-set comeback after dropping the first set to defeat the Nor'Easters 3-1.

Records:

• Western New England: 8-7, 2-2 CCC
• University of New England: 6-9, 1-3 CCC

How It Happened:

In the first set, the Golden Bears scored the first point before the back-and-forth action began with the set being tied three times before Western New England was able to score three consecutive points and take an 8-5 lead over the Nor'Easters. The University of New England began chipping away at the Golden Bears' lead recording a 3-0 run to tie the sets 12-12. Western New England worked to tie the set 14-14 before the Nor'Easters gained control with a 7-0 run to take a 21-14 lead. The Golden Bears were unable to recover and dropped the first set 25-17.

The Golden Bears had a quick start to the second set taking a 4-1 lead. The Nor'Easters battled to get within one (7-6) only to motivate the Golden Bears to go on a 5-0 run with Becca Mayer at the serve to gain a 12-6 lead. The Nor'Easters later answered with three consecutive points to get within three (13-10). With Sarah Scott at the serve, the Golden Bears tallied four straight points to lead 17-10. Western New England maintained their lead defending multiple runs from the Nor'Easters to win the second set 25-20 and tie the match 1-1.

The third set started with the two teams trading points and the set being tied three times in the first eight points. The Golden Bears gained some control to score three unanswered points and take a 7-4 lead only for the Nor'Easters to score the next two points and remain one point behind (7-6). Western New England rallied for a 5-0 run to extend their lead to six (13-7). The Nor'Easters began to chip away at the Golden Bear lead and with a 4-0 run got back within one (16-15). This put the Golden Bears into gear recording three straight points followed by five more points to lead 24-16. The Golden Bears scored the final point to win the set 25-17 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Nor'Easters took the early lead in the fourth set only for Western New England to fight back and score three consecutive points to lead 7-4. The two teams began trading points with neither team able to score more than two in a row with the Golden Bears maintaining their lead 15-11. With first year Alissa Hawes at the serve, the Golden Bears went on a scoring spree tallying six straight points to take a 21-11 lead. The Nor'Easters were unable to recover from the deficit and the Golden Bears won the set 25-16 and the match 3-1.

Inside the Numbers:

• The Golden Bears tallied 51 kills, 48 assists and 70 digs in the match along with nine service aces and a .227 hitting percentage.
• Sarah Scott, Isabelle Petty, Olivia Hall and Hailey Sell all earned nine kills apiece while Scott led the team with 20 digs.
• Sell tallied 38 assists in the match while Hall earned 11 digs and Becca Mayer earned 10.

Up Next:

The Golden Bears remain on the road heading to Mount Holyoke on Friday, October 8^th for a 6 p.m. match against the Lions in a non-conference competition.