Volleyball Takes Straight Sets from Nichols

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 27, 2021) – The Golden Bears hosted conference rival Nichols College this evening where the Golden Bears swept the conference opponent 3-0.

Records:

• Western New England: 11-12, 4-4 CCC
• Nichols: 5-11, 1-7 CCC

How It Happened:

The Golden Bears opened the first set strong scoring three straight points only for the Bison to answer with three points themselves to tie the set 3-3. Three more for Western New England with Sarah Scott at the serve earned the Golden Bears the lead once again before the two teams began trading points. Neither team could score more than two in a row with the Golden Bears remaining in the lead. Hailey Sell took the serve with the Golden Bears leading 12-19 and extended the lead to 15-9 forcing the Bison into a timeout. Western New England scored the first point out of the timeout before Nichols was able to rally for five straight points to get back within two of the Golden Bears (16-14). The back-and-forth action quickly began again with the two teams trading points with the Golden Bears holding on to their lead. Nichols went on a 4-0 run to tie the set 22-22 before Scott muscled an attack over the net to keep Western New England in the lead 23-22 forcing the Bison into their second timeout of the set. Scott took control for the Golden Bears scoring the final two points to win the set 25-23 for Western New England to have a 1-0 lead in the match.

An ace by senior Taylor Deluga set the tone for the second set and she then went on to record two more aces for a 3-0 lead. Nichols took a timeout early into the set. The teams began trading points with neither able to score more than two consecutively. Zoe Bozzay came in to serve for the Golden Bears at 7-6 and opened with an ace that rallied Western New England for three more points to lead 10-6 and force the Bison into their second timeout of the set. With Bozzay at the serve, the Golden Bears scored four more points after the timeout to lead 14-6. The Bison rallied for three unanswered points to get within five (14-9) before the two began trading points. The Golden Bears led 16-12 when they scored three straight points to take a 19-12 lead. Nichols fought to be within seven (22-15) and continued to fight down 24-16 before the Golden Bears scored the final point to win the second set 25-16 and lead the match 2-0.

Nichols scored the first point of the third set before Bozzay took the serve for the Golden Bears and led her team to a 6-0 run to take a 6-1 lead. The Golden Bears took a timeout after the Bison earned back the serve. Western New England scored the first point out of the timeout before Nichols was able to score two in a row. The teams began trading points with the Golden Bears remaining in the lead 9-4. The Bison rallied for a 4-0 run before a kill by Scott ended the Bison's rally. The Golden Bears notched three more points to lead 12-8 before Nichols earned back the serve. A kill by Alissa Hawes earned the Golden Bears the serve once again with a 13-9 lead. After the Golden Bears took a 15-10 lead, the Bison called a timeout. Western New England came out of the timeout to score four straight points and lead 19-10, their largest lead of the set. After a point from the Bison, Western New England earned back the serve with Bozzay coming back in. With Bozzay at the serve, the Golden Bears took a 23-11 lead putting the Golden Bears within reach of winning the match. Western New England kept the momentum to win the third and final set 25-12.

Inside the Numbers:

• The Golden Bears tallied 29 kills, 28 assists, 57 digs and 16 service aces in the match while hitting .134.
• Scott led Western New England with eight kills while also earning nine digs and one assist.
• Abigail Bundy earned seven kills in the match.
• Hailey Sell notched 25 assists in the match to lead the Golden Bears along with two service aces and three block assists.
• Olivia Hall led the team with 16 digs along with four kills.
• Bozzay was impressive at the serve setting a career-high with six service aces.

Up Next:

The Golden Bears remain at the Alumni Healthful Living Center for their last match of the regular season when they host Endicott for senior day on Saturday, October 30 at 12 p.m.