NORTON, Mass. — The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's volleyball team fell short in a comeback bid, but succumbed to visiting Emerson College, 3-2 (25-23, 25-23, 21-25, 22-25, 15-13) this evening in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons slip to 10-16 overall and 2-7 in league play, while the Lions improve to 13-12 and 5-4.
Neither team was able to get into a hitting rhythm during the night, combining for 61 attack errors. Emerson hit .147, while Wheaton posted a .110 hitting percentage.
The match was tightly played with no set being decided by more than four points and three frames – all three set wins for the Lions – were two-point decisions.
Senior Celina Henn (Atwater, Calif.) led the Lyons with a match-high 16 kills on a .286 hitting mark to go with 18 digs, an ace and a block assist, while junior right side hitter Mary Caroline Mazzanti (New Orleans, La.) spiked for 10 kills, got up for three block assists and registered a pair of digs. Senior outside hitter Sydney Lyon (Weston, Conn.) put away nine kills to give her 1143 for her career to pull into a tie for fifth on Wheaton's career list with Lauren Kraus '10. She also added four digs, an ace and a block assist. First year setter Emily Cordell (Crawfordville, Fla.) set for 20 assists, served up three aces and picked up five digs and junior libero Jackie Hochberg (Tampa, Fla.) got down for 20 digs.
Sophomore setter Chloe Hokenson (McLean, Va.) nearly posted a triple-double with 13 kills, 24 assists and nine digs to lead Emerson and also hit .243, fired three aces and got up for four block assists. Junior outside hitter Rachel Dickerson (Frisco, Texas) put down 14 kills, added eight digs and recorded a pair of block assists. First year outside hitter Shirley Yu (Hong Kong) swung for 10 kills, added a pair of block assists and two digs, while junior libero Lauren Yoo (Redondo Beach, Calif.) got down for 20 digs.
The Lions won the first two sets by a combined four points, before Wheaton took the next two frames to knot the match at 2-2. The Lyons were within a point at 14-13, before Emerson put down the final kill for the match win.
The teams traded points through the first 16 points and were tied at 8-8 in the opening set. Neither team led by more than two points and were deadlocked again at 18-18. Wheaton took the largest lead of the set to that point with three straight points, including a kill from Henn to give the home team a 21-18 margin. The Lions came back and closed out the set with a 7-2 run, including a pair of kills from Dickerson, to take the set 25-23.
In the second frame, instead of trading individual points, the teams traded chunks of five points apiece. Junior defensive specialist Arianna Tanksley (Chesapeake, Va.) fired an ace to pull the Lyons even at 7-7, before Emerson ripped off five straight points, including two kills from Yu, to take a 12-7 lead. Wheaton scored the next five points to tie the frame at 12-12, but once again, the Lions answered with the next five points, paced by a pair of blocks from first year middle hitter Emma Luehring (Munich, Germany), to restore their five-point advantage at 17-12. Right on cue, the Lyons responded with the next five points to knot the contest at 17-17. Emerson scored six of the next seven points, fueled by a pair of aces from sophomore defensive specialist Sami Kim (San Diego, Calif.), to give the visitors a 23-18 margin. Wheaton cut the deficit to one at 23-22 with four unanswered points, but the Lions scored two of the final three points, including a kill from first year middle hitter Catherine McDonough (Agoura Hills, Calif.), to go up 2-0 in the match.
The Lyons erased a 3-2 early deficit in the third set with a commanding 16-5 run to take an 18-8 cushion, behind five kills from Henn. The big lead was crucial, because Emerson put together a 12-3 stretch, led by two kills each from Hokenson, Yu and first year right side hitter Lizi Horning (El Dorado Hills, Calif.), to close the gap to 21-20. Wheaton regrouped and scored four of the final five points to win its first frame of the night, following a kill from senior middle hitter Hollis Hanson (Parker, Colo.).
Sophomore setter Sophia Schiappa (Burr Ridge, Ill.) put down a kill to give the Lions their only lead of the fourth set at 1-0. The Lyons went on a 7-2 run for a 7-3 lead and later owned a 12-7 margin. Emerson later cut the difference to 16-13 after a kill from Dickerson, before Wheaton scored the next three points to open up a 19-13 advantage. The Lions battled back with a 7-3 burst, paced by a pair of kills from Horning, to pull the visitors to within 22-20. The teams traded kills for the remainder of the set, before Hollis ended the frame again with a kill to give Wheaton a three-point set win to tie the match at 2-2.
Hokenson swung for two early kills to start the fifth set and give Emerson a 4-1 margin. The Lyons scored five of the next six points to take a 6-5 edge and later owned a 7-6 lead, but it was their last lead of the night. The Lions put together an 8-3 stretch, fueled by two kills and an ace from Hokenson, to put them a point away from a road victory. Wheaton scored the next three points, including a kill from Mazzanti, to bring the home team within one at 14-13, but Dickerson put down the final kill for the Emerson win.
The Lions return to the court on Saturday, November 1 when they host Gordon College at 5:00 p.m., while the Lyons host Nichols College on October 30 at 7:00 p.m.
