Two wins for Volleyball in tri-match

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University Women's Volleyball team swept its home tri-match featuring Wheaton College and Trinity College. The Hawks defeated Wheaton 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-13) before holding off Trinity 3-2 (20-25, 25-17, 23-25, 25-23, 15-7). Trinity won the middle match against Wheaton 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-15).

In the first match of the day between the Hawks and Wheaton, the first game opened up neck-and-neck, with both teams trading points back and forth. Neither team led by more than two points over the first half of the match. With the score tied at ten, the Hawks used a 5-1 run to put a little distance between them and the Lyons. With a Wheaton service error making the score 17-13 in favor of the Hawks, RWU rolled off five straight points to make it a 21-13 advantage. Roger Williams would ultimately take the set 25-18 on an attack error by Wheaton.

In the second set, Wheaton jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, but the Hawks would respond with ten straight points, three of which came on service aces by Holly Hancock (Tilton, N.H.). Wheaton would get back five of the six four points before a 9-4 Hawk rally put RWU on top 20-11. The Hawks would hold on to the lead for the remainder of the set, with Marilu Gonzalez-Yanez (Los Angeles, Calif.) earning the final kill to make it 25-17 in favor of RWU.

In the third set, the Hawks nearly led wire-to-wire, save for a kill by Rachel Vergara (Needham, Mass.) to give the Lyons an early 2-1 lead. Roger Williams came back to eventually claim a 9-5 advantage. Wheaton made it 8-11 before ten straight points put the Hawks on top 21-8. The Hawks ultimately clinched the victory on a bad set by Wheaton, winning 25-13.

Kelsey Twarog (Barkhamsted, Conn.) led all players with nine kills while hitting .500 in the match. Hancock also hit .500, finishing with seven kills and a career-high five service aces. Emily Lebowitz (Coventry, Conn.) added 28 assists and six digs, while Kelsee Loche (Millis, Mass.) had six digs and three aces.

Lindsay Tebbetts (Gilmanton, N.H.) led Wheaton with seven kills along with three digs. Olanna Nissim (Greenwich, Conn.) had 14 assists and two digs for the Lyons, while teammate Emily Davisson (Carpinteria, Calif.) finished with a match-high 16 digs.

The second match of the day saw Wheaton face Trinity College. Trinity jumped out to an early 4-0 lead, eventually extending it to 13-3 via a pair of kill by Kelly O'Brien (Pelham Manor, N.Y.). The Lyons fought their way back into the match, getting back-to-back service aces by Nissim to pull within three (13-16) but would not come closer. Trinity would hold on for the win, getting an ace by Sarah Blagden (Charleston, S.C.) to earn the 25-17 win.

The second set began with a Wheaton kill by Nissim, followed by a 10-0 Trinity run. Penelope Carter (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands) and Danielle Isaman (West Hartford, Conn.) combined for four kills over the stretch. Trinity maintained a lead of at least eight over the remainder of the set, closing the game out with four straight points to win 25-12.

The third set began back-and-forth between the teams, with Wheaton and Trinity locked within a few points of each other over the first few minutes. Trinity would slowly pull away eventually taking a 12-4 lead. Clara Zinman (Chestnut Hill, Mass.) would ultimately clinch the match for Trinity 25-15 with an ace that clipped the top of the net.

Isaman led the Bantams with 12 kills, while O'Brien added ten kills. Jennifer Low (San Francisco, Calif.) finished with 31 assists, while Alexandra Pell (San Diego, Calif.) had six kills, nine digs, and two aces for Trinity.

Tebbetts led Wheaton with six kills, with Vergara contributing five kills. Nissim had 15 assists, five digs, and two aces for the Lyons. Davisson led all players with 12 digs.

In the final match of the day, the Hawks came through with a thrilling five-set victory. The match began with a 20-25 win in the first set by Trinity. Both teams battled back and forth through long rallies and athletic digs. The set itself saw ten ties and seven lead changes. The turning point in the set was a 5-0 run by Trinity that broke a 16-all tie, putting the Bantams in the driver seat en route to a 25-20 win. The tide turned in favor of the Hawks in the second set. Roger Williams scored the first two points of the game and never trailed. Although Trinity remained in striking distance throughout most of the set, the Hawks pulled away toward the end of the game, never dropping their lead past six over the final points, coming away with the 25-17 win.

In the third set, the Bantams gained the momentum after a furious rally at the end of the set. Trailing all set long and down 22-18, Trinity used a kill by Pell to spark a 5-0 run and go on top 23-22, the Bantams' first lead of the game. Although the Hawks came back to tie the set at 23 apiece, Trinity picked up another crucial kill by Pell for point-game, followed by a Hawk attack error to take the set 25-23.

The fourth set played out similar to the previous one, with the Hawks jumping out to the early lead and maintaining the advantage throughout the set. However, just like the third set, Trinity came back, turning a 16-10 deficit into a 21-all tie. A kill by Torpey and error on Trinity put the Hawks up by two before Isaman dropped a kill to pull within one. On the ensuing rally, the Bantams were called for a carry on the second touch after an outstanding dig by Blagden. Although Isaman got a kill on the following point, the Hawks forced the fifth set on a kill by Twarog.

In the final set, the Hawks jumped out the gate to a 4-0 lead with the help of a pair of kills by Torpey. Holding the momentum from the previous set, Roger Williams kept the pressure on the Bantams, not allowing Trinity to pull closer than three throughout the game. Krystie Luczynski (Kensington, Conn.) handed down the final kill to give RWU the 15-7 win and the match.

Luczynski led the Hawks with 13 kills in the match, while Hancock added12. Twarog finished with a double-double, going for 11 kills and 13 digs. Lebowitz had a season-high 45 assists along with 16 digs. Loche had a game-high 27 digs with two service aces, while Emily Werth (Cheshire, Conn.) added a career-high 19 digs and two aces.

For Trinity, Isaman led all players with 21 kills to go along with 15 digs. Carpenter and Blagden led the team in digs with 24 and 22, respectively. Pell added 17 kills and 15 digs, while Zinman finished with four aces.

Roger Williams (14-3) hosts Emerson College Tuesday evening at 7:00 p.m. in the team's annual Dig Pink match. Wheaton (2-13) travels to WPI on Tuesday, while Trinity (8-2) goes to Hamilton on Wednesday.

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Players Mentioned

#10 Marilu Gonzalez-Yanez: DS; 5' 5"; Senior

#14 Holly Hancock: MH/RS; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#7 Emily Lebowitz: S; 5' 9"; Junior

#4 Kelsee Loche: DS; 5' 8"; Junior

#9 Krystie Luczynski: MH/OH; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#12 Kelsey Twarog: OH; 5' 9"; Junior

#8 Emily Werth: DS; 5' 5"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#10 Marilu Gonzalez-Yanez
: 5' 5"; Senior
: DS

#14 Holly Hancock
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: MH/RS

#7 Emily Lebowitz
: 5' 9"; Junior
: S

#4 Kelsee Loche
: 5' 8"; Junior
: DS

#9 Krystie Luczynski
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: MH/OH

#12 Kelsey Twarog
: 5' 9"; Junior
: OH

#8 Emily Werth
: 5' 5"; Freshman
: DS