Corsairs Rally to Sweep Women's Volleyball 3-0

NEWTON, Mass. (9/29/15) – The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth swept the Lasell women's volleyball team by set scores of 25-22, 25-22, and 26-24 in non-conference action Tuesday evening in the Athletic Center. The loss sinks the Lasers to 5-13 overall, while the Corsairs shift to 8-9 this year.

The Lasell offense was paced by freshman Odina Ellis (Providence, R.I.) and senior Sharisse Scott-Rawlins (Brockton, Mass.), who each contributed with five kills apiece. Senior Heather Longley (North Granby, Conn.) chipped in for the attack with four kills, while sophomore libero Caitlyn Garcia (Moreno Valley, Calif.) led the Lasers' defense with 13 digs.

Corsairs' junior Megan Ronaghan (North Attleboro, Mass.) led all players in the match with nine kills and five digs, while senior Eliza Bowes (West Yarmouth, Mass.) smashed seven kills and three services aces while also recording a game-high 14 digs.

The Lasers survived nine ties in set one before the Corsairs pulled away in the closing points to seal the match 25-22 via a kill from freshman Cait Medeiros (Acushnet, Mass.). Set two featured seven ties of its own, as the Lasers came out with a different pace on the offensive side. With Scott-Rawlins on the serve, the home team put together four straight points – including two service aces – to spring the Lasers up 7-3, forcing a UMass timeout. The Corsairs plugged away at the deficit and took the lead after a Lasell ball handling error (13-12), and never looked back for the set victory of 25-22.

Momentum changed for the third set of the night, as the Lasers riffled off five straight points, guided by three service aces from junior Cassandra Stout (Plymouth, Mass.) UMass was able to put together a few points as time went on, but trailed by as much as 12 points at 23-11.

UMass then went on an offensive tear to score the next 13 points, all of which originated from Bowes' serve, to turn the match around 24-23. A visitors' service error tied the game at 24 all, but two back-to-back errors from the home team granted the Corsairs the 26-24 set victory.

Both squads will return to tri-match action on Saturday, October 3. The Lasers will head to Boston, Mass. for a local Great Northeast Athletic Conference match up starting at 3:00 p.m., while the Corsairs host Mount Ida and Eastern Nazarene at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., respectively.