BABSON PARK, Mass. – The seventh-seeded Wheaton College (Mass.) women's volleyball team was defeated by host second-seed Babson College, 3-0 (25-16, 25-14, 25-15), this evening in the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference Championship Tournament Quarterfinals at Staake Gymnasium in Babson Park, Mass.
The Lyons, who are ranked seventh in the most recent NCAA Region II survey, finish their season with a 14-14 record, while the Beavers are ranked third in the region and improve to 24-5 on the year.
Babson advances to the NEWMAC Semifinals and will take on number three seed Massachusetts Institute of Technology after the Engineers' 3-0 win over sixth-seeded Emerson College tonight. The match will be played on Saturday, November 11 at top-seeded Springfield College in Springfield, Mass.
The Beavers hit .269 or better in every set and finished the contest with a powerful .329 hitting percentage, while limiting Wheaton to just three service aces and a .032 hitting mark.
Sophomore outside hitter Sydney Lyon (Weston, Conn.) led the Lyons with 7.5 points on six kills, an ace and a block assist, while classmate Celina Henn (Atwater, Calif.) put down six kills as well and added six digs. Sophomore middle hitter Hollis Hanson (Parker, Colo.) contributed with four kills on a .333 hitting clip to go with a block solo. Senior setter Julianna Flack (Saint Petersburg, Fla.) fired a pair of aces to give her 72 for the season, leaving her just one shy of cracking Wheaton's top 10 for aces in a season. She also added 16 assists and picked up four digs. First year libero Jackie Hochberg (Tampa, Fla.) picked up nine digs for the Lyons.
Senior hitter Erin Gray (Oakland, Calif.) led all players with nine kills for Babson on a .250 hitting percentage in addition to three digs and a pair of block assists, while junior hitter Lauren Gips (Winter Park, Fla.) registered a match-best 10.5 points with eight kills, an ace and two total blocks. Sophomore hitter Isabella Allen (Williamsville, N.Y.) spiked for eight kills and added a pair of digs. First year setter Zoe Ackerman (Aurora, Colo.) directed the offense with 23 assists for the Beavers, fired two aces and picked up two digs. Sophomore libero Roz Cabuena (Kailua, Hawaii) got down for a match-high 15 digs.
Babson opened the set with a 5-2 lead, before a 4-1 burst pulled Wheaton even at 6-6, led by a kill each from Henn and Hanson. The Lyons stayed within a point at 8-7, but the Beavers reeled off four unanswered points to extend their lead to 12-7 in a set they never trailed in. Henn later cut the deficit to 17-15 with a kill, before Babson went on a torrid 8-1 run to close out the set at 25-16 to take a 1-0 match lead. Ackerman paced the Beavers' closing stretch with a pair of aces.
Wheaton scored three of the first four points to take a 3-1 lead, including kills from Henn and Lyon. A Lyon kill later gave the Lyons an 8-7 edge. Babson pulled ahead at 9-8, before first year right side hitter Mary Caroline Mazzanti (New Orleans, La.) pulled the visitors even at 9-9. The Beavers put the set away with a 15-5 stretch that saw five different players record a kill, including two each from Gray and first year hitter Natalie Molendyk (Danville, Calif.), to give Babson a 25-14 triumph.
Wheaton took an early 3-1 lead, before an 11-2 Beaver run led by two kills each from Gray and senior hitter Lulu McShane (Glencoe, Ill.), gave the Green and White a 12-5 cushion. The Lyons battled back with four of the next five points, capped by an ace from Flack to cut the margin to 13-9. A kill from sophomore middle hitter Julia Wingler (Fuquay Varina, N.C.) kept it a four-point different at 14-10, but for all intents and purposes, Babson put the set away with an 8-1 blitz that gave the Beavers a 22-11 advantage for their largest lead of the frame. Wheaton showed some life with another 4-1 burst, including a kill each from Mazzanti and Lyon to pull to within 23-15. Babson tallied the final two points to take the set and the match to advance to the next round of the tournament.
