November 13, 2009

Wellesley Moves on to NCAA Women's Volleyball Second Round With Four-Set Win Over Clarkson

MEDFORD, Mass. -- The Wellesley College Blue used the momentum of victories in the first two sets to move past the Clarkson University Golden Knights 3-1 (25-16, 25-14, 23-25, 25-19) in a first round matchup of the 2009 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship on Thursday evening at Cousens Gymnasium on the campus of Tufts University.

Fifth-seeded Wellesley took control of the first set early, grabbing the initial lead and never allowing the No. 4-seed Clarkson to move ahead. There were just two ties in the first set, coming at 4-4 and 5-5. The Blue led by as many as ten and the Golden Knights only drew as close as six the rest of the way as Wellesley took set one 25-16.

In the second set Wellesley did more of the same, tallying nine of the first 11 points. Clarkson never held a lead in the set and there were no ties. The Blue continued to push their lead higher as the set went on en route to a 25-14 second set victory.

Clarkson in the third set was able to gain an early advantage at 8-5. Wellesley eventually pulled ahead to leads of 12-10 and later 17-15, however the Golden Knights would not surrender in this set. Once they took an 18-17 lead, they never relinquished it and forced a fourth set with a 25-23 win.

The Golden Knights would take an early lead in the fourth set at 3-1, but the Blue used the formula from the first two sets to regain control, taking a lead of 5-4 and never looking back. Wellesley's largest lead was 11 at 16-5. Clarkson would attempt a rally, pulling to within four at 21-17, but they did not have enough in the end as Wellesley won the fourth set 25-19 and took the match 3-1.

Junior Alice Kate Cummings (Tallahassee, FL) led Wellesley (24-9) with 12 kills and 23 digs, while first-year Elizabeth Campbell (Solona Beach, CA) added ten kills and a match-high five service aces. First-year Isabel Custodio (Powell, OH) recorded 26 assists and two service aces and senior Naomi Iwata's (Seattle, WA) 25 digs was a match high. Sophomore Amanda Duritsch (Troy, OH) led the Blue with one solo block and three assists.

Senior Jenna Stock (Johnstown, NY) had a match-high 30 assists for Clarkson (28-7) as well as 18 digs. First-year Courtney Haines (Crestview, FL) tallied 12 kills while junior Alison Schroeder (Webster, NY) finished with a team-high 24 digs.

"We blocked very, very well," said Wellesley coach Dorothy Webb. "It's been something we've worked on hard and it's just now coming together. Our two front row right-side hitters were terrific."

Wellesley will take on the winner of Thursday's 8:00 first-round match between Tufts and Maine Maritime in the New England Regional Semifinals of the 2009 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship on Friday evening at 7 pm.