Western New England Drops 3-1 Decision to Wentworth

Matthews finishes with 16 kills & 17 digs for Golden Bears

BOSTON, Mass. (October 17, 2018) – The Western New England University volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (25-16, 18-25, 25-18, 25-20) decision to the Wentworth Institute of Technology on Wednesday evening in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at Tansey Gymnasium.

Top Performers
Junior outside hitter Ashley Matthews (Salem, N.H.) led the Golden Bears with a double-double performance, as she hit .283 with 16 kills and 17 digs.

Sophomore setter Jenna McCormack (Nashua, N.H.) handed out 38 assists to go with eight digs and two blocks, while senior outside hitter Jenna Ferguson (Ellington, Conn.) finished with a team-high 18 digs.

Wentworth junior outside hitter Claire Quick (Mission Viejo, Calif.) paced the Leopards with a 16-kill, 15-dig performance.

Junior outside hitter Leah Rogoz (Woodridge, Ill.) also posted a double-double with 12 kills and 18 digs.

Game Review
Wentworth led 9-3 early in the first set, before the Golden Bears battled back to tie the score at 16 on a kill by sophomore Abigail Bundy (Lebanon, Conn.). The Leopards responded with a kill from Quick to regain the lead, however, sparking a 9-0 run to end the set as Wentworth claimed a 1-0 edge in the match.

Western New England hit .333 in the second frame and handed the Leopards their first set loss since September 27 with a 25-18 result. The Golden Bears used an early 5-0 run to pull ahead 10-6, and they never relinquished their lead.

With the third set tied 5-5, Wentworth posted a 6-2 run to claim an 11-7 advantage. The Golden Bears were able to keep the score close throughout, as they trailed by the same margin (22-18) later in the frame, but the Leopards won the final three points to close out the set and take a 2-1 lead.

In the fourth set, Wentworth utilized a pair of 4-0 runs midway through the frame to take control. The Leopards led by as much as seven (19-12) before sealing the match with a 25-20 win.

Notes
• With the victory, the Leopards extended their winning streak to 14 matches.
• Western New England posted a .169 hitting percentage for the match, while Wentworth hit .199.

Up Next
Both teams will be back in action on Saturday, as Western New England (8-16, 3-2 CCC) returns home to host Endicott and Wentworth (20-2, 6-0 CCC) looks to extend its winning streak at Gordon.