Volleyball to Host Salve Regina in CCC Quarterfinal Tuesday Night

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (November 2, 2015) - The fourth-seeded Western New England University volleyball team opens the 2015 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Championship tomorrow night at 7 p.m. with a quarterfinal matchup against fifth-seeded Salve Regina University at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

For fans not in attendance, both live stats and live video will be available via www.wnegoldenbears.com.

Western New England (13-12, 5-3 CCC) enters tomorrow's action having won its last three matches without dropping a single set. The Golden Bears secured the No. 4 seed in the tournament on Saturday with a 3-0, senior day victory over Wentworth, and also posted 3-0 wins over both Curry and Colby-Sawyer College last week. Western New England's three-match winning streak ties its longest of the season, as the team also won three straight in non-conference play in early September. 

Salve Regina (11-16, 5-3 CCC) comes into tomorrow's quarterfinal contest having lost two consecutive contests, including a 3-1 setback to Endicott College last Tuesday. The Seahawks opened their season with wins in three of their first four matches, but went through a rough stretch after that, dropping nine of ten matches from 9/11-9/24 that culminated in a 3-2 loss to the Golden Bears in Newport, R.I. 

Salve Regina and Western New England finished the regular season ranked fifth and sixth, respectively, in the CCC in hitting percentage with clips of .140 and .132. The Seahawks were one of the top blocking squads in the conferece, averaging 1.44/set (2nd), while the Golden Bears ranked fourth out of nine teams with 2.26 service aces/set.

The winner of tomorrow night's match advances to the CCC semifinals on Thursday to take on top-seeded Roger Williams University, which earned a first round bye. Tomorrow's other quarterfinal contest will pit third-seeded Endicott against sixth-seeded University of New England. Gordon College earned the other bye and will face the winner of the Endicott/UNE match on Thursday. 

Who to Watch: 
Olivia Lathrop, Western New England (Sr., MH, Farmington, Conn.) - Lathrop has been a force up front for the Golden Bears all season, averaging 2.63 kills/set (6th in CCC) while hitting .297 (2nd). She also contributes 0.54 blocks and 0.46 digs/set, and totaled 3+ blocks seven times this fall.

Samantha Salwa, Salve Regina (So., S, Ellington, Conn.) - Salwa leads the Seahawks and ranks third in the CCC with 8.63 assists/set, and has recorded 30+ assists eight times. Her season-high of 46 came in a 3-1 loss to WPI on October 10th. 

Carly Skibinski, Western New England (So., MH, Milford, N.J.) - Skibinski has enjoyed a successful sophomore season playing at the net alongside Lathrop, as she averaged 2.56 kills/set (8th in CCC) and 0.60 blocks/set (8th) during the regular season. Skibinski has been particularly effective over Western New England's last eight matches, registering 10+ kills six times since October 18th, including a 14-kill effort in a 3-1 win over St. Lawrence (10/17).

Chrissy Fraga, Salve Regina (Sr., OH/L, Milford, Mass.) - Fraga was one of the top defensive players in the CCC this fall, leading the conference with 5.19 digs/set. She finished with double-digit digs in 20 of the 25 matches she played in during the regular season, totaling 20+ on 13 occasions.

Last Meeting: Western New England claimed the only meeting between the two teams this season, defeating the Seahawks 3-2 (25-21,16-25,25-23,17-25, 15-11) in the CCC opener for both teams back on September 24th. Lathrop and Skibinski led the way for the Golden Bears, hitting .389 and .325 respectively, and recording 18 kills apiece. Sophomore middle blocker Samantha Higgins (Coventry, R.I.) finished with 12 kills for the Seahawks. Tomorrow night's contest also serves as a rematch of the 2014 CCC semifinals, which Salve Regina won in a five-set thriller last November in Springfield.