Golden Bears Drop Regular Season Finale to Roger Williams, 3-1

Fiore paces Western New England with career-high ten kills

BRISTOL, R.I. (October 27, 2018) – The Western New England University volleyball team dropped its regular season finale to Roger Williams University by a 3-1 (25-18, 13-25, 25-21, 25-21) score on Saturday afternoon in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at RWU's Campus Rec Center.

Top Performers
Sophomore middle blocker Toni Fiore (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) paced the Golden Bears with a career-high ten kills.

Junior middle blocker Cassandra Holmes (Ellington, Conn.) hit .571 with nine kills, five digs and three blocks, while junior outside hitter Ashley Matthews (Salem, N.H.) finished with seven kills, nine digs and three aces.

Roger Williams was led by senior middle hitter Jill McManaman (Bellerose Village, N.Y.), who hit .615 with a team-high nine kills and just one error in 13 attempts.

Senior outside hitter Nicki Fallisi (Salem, N.H.) chipped in with seven kills, 12 digs and two assists, while senior middle hitter  Molly Quilty (Duxbury, Mass.) added seven kills for the Hawks.

Game Review
The Hawks controlled the first set, as they held early leads of 4-1 and 10-4 before claiming a 25-18 triumph to take a 1-0 lead in the match.

Western New England rebounded in the second set, as the Golden Bears posted a match-best .261 hitting percentage and Roger Williams struggled with a -.080 clip. Western New England scored the first four points of the frame and led 16-7 midway through, before pulling away down the stretch to even the match with a 25-13 result.

The Hawks held the advantage early in the key third set, as they led by as much as five (12-7), before the Golden Bears eventually took the lead (15-14) on a service ace by senior Jenna Ferguson (Ellington, Conn.) that capped a 5-0 run. With the set tied 20-20 late, Roger Williams won four straight points before ending the frame on a kill by Quilty to pull back ahead 2-1 in the match.

The final set saw the Hawks hit a match best .423 and close out the contest with a 25-21 win. Roger Williams, which never trailed in the frame, led 20-12 and held off the Golden Bears late to seal the win.

Notes
• Western New England posted a .205 hitting percentage, while the Hawks turned in a .241 attack clip.
• Sophomore setter Jenna McCormack (Nashua, N.H.) recorded 33 assists, eight digs and three aces.  

Up Next
Western New England (9-19, 3-5 CCC) will enter next week's CCC Tournament as the No. 6 seed, and the Golden Bears will be on the road at third-seeded Salve Regina in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. Fourth-seeded Roger Williams (15-12, 6-2 CCC) will host No. 5 seed Gordon.