CHICOPEE, Mass. – The Rivier women's volleyball team swept Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) opponent Elms Saturday afternoon at Picknelly Arena.
With the win, the Raiders jumped to 7-7 (4-1 GNAC), while the Blazers fell to 2-9 (1-4 GNAC). The win marks the sixth consecutive victory over Elms.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Rivier opened the match with a 5-2 lead after four Elms attack errors and a service ace from sophomore Mia Pento. The Raiders continued to control the early stages, building a 10-4 advantage before extending the lead to 14-9 behind kills from junior Lydia Brakefield, junior Lily Seibel, and first-year Brooke Braswell. Elms responded with 10 straight points to take a 19-14 lead. Rivier battled back, scoring five of the next six points to tie the set at 20-20. After Elms regained a 21-20 advantage, the Raiders scored four straight points to take a 24-21 lead, highlighted by kills from seniors Sam Driend and Lacey Turner and a Turner service ace. Elms cut the deficit to 24-22, but Rivier closed out the opening set on a kill from first-year Ava Pohopek, 25-22.
- Rivier took control early in the second set, building a 9-3 advantage behind kills from junior Annabelle Lozzi, Turner, and Seibel, along with a service ace by sophomore Mollie Miner. The Raiders continued to extend the lead, moving ahead 12-4 following a Driend service ace, before Elms answered with three straight points to cut the deficit to 12-7. Rivier quickly regained its momentum, using kills from Seibel and senior Kacey Riseborough and aces from Pohopek and Pento to push the lead to 17-10. The Raiders maintained their advantage from there, reaching 20-12 before closing out the set with five of the final nine points, including kills from Driend, Riseborough and Pohopek, 25-16.
- Elms opened the third set with a 3-1 lead, but Rivier responded with three straight kills from Driend to move ahead 4-3 and later built a 7-4 advantage. The Blazers battled back to tie the set at 10-10, but the Raiders answered with a 4-1 stretch, including a kill from junior Savannah Dunne and a block from Dunne and Lozzi, to take a 14-11 lead. Rivier maintained its advantage through the middle of the set, using kills by Driend, Turner, and sophomore Avery MacDonald to hold a 20-15. The Raiders then scored four consecutive points, sealing the 25-19 set victory and a 3-0 sweep.
BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN
- Driend paced the offense with 10 kills, adding a .474 hitting percentage.
- Pohopek followed close behind with five kills and a .556 hitting percentage.
- Seibel dished out 26 assists and nine digs.
- Defensively, Pento led the lead with 12 digs.
UP NEXT
The Raiders return to the court Tuesday, Oct. 6 for a GNAC clash with Emmanuel (Mass.) The opening save is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at the Muldoon Center.
