KEENE, N.H. – The Keene State College women's volleyball team registered a season-high 11 blocks and in the process held Plymouth State University to a season-worst .103 hitting percentage as the Owls picked up a big 3-1 (25-22, 16-25, 25-17, 25-20) Little East Conference victory on Wednesday night at Spaulding Gymnasium.
Highlights...coming soon
Postgame Interview (Coach Girard)
Postgame Interview (Bella Bacon/Sarah Bartels)
In the middle of an important stretch of league games – which includes two at home this week after two on the road last week – KSC (7-7, 2-1 LEC) remained very much in the thick of the race for the top spots by beating Plymouth (11-4, 2-1 LEC) for the second consecutive regular season meeting and 12th time in 18 all-time meetings in the Elm City. The front half of the Owls' league slate this season appeared to be loaded with the contenders, beginning with road trips to Eastern Connecticut State University (five set win) and the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (five set loss) before a pair of critical home matches this week that could play a big factor in deciding tiebreakers and the final standings.
So far, so good, as KSC has won two of their first three conference games – tonight ending PSU's six-match winning streak.
It was a ferocious run in the third set that ultimately helped swing the match decidedly in the Owls' favor after the teams split the opening two sets, with KSC squeezing out a 25-22 win in the opener after scoring the final four points before the visitors took command late in the second for a 25-16 victory.
After the teams split the first six points in the swing third frame, two kills by
Marina Miller and
Sarah Bartels helped aid a 4-0 run that gave the Owls an early upper hand at 7-3. Plymouth hung around, getting within 11-8 after consecutive kills, but a spike by
Aiya Dottin and an ace by
Alexis Small made it a six-point edge (14-8). KSC ultimately laid the hammer down, ripping off nine straight points to take a 20-8 lead with
Bella Bacon notching a kill and a block within the surge also. The Owls remained in firm command and took a 2-1 lead after a Plymouth attacking miscue polished off a 25-17 Keene State set win.
Having gone to five sets a whopping six times this season including in four straight matches, the Owls used two more timely surges to avoid going the distance again. Down 6-3 early in the fourth, KSC rattled off four straight culminating with a
Reece Connors kill to take their first lead of the frame – one they would ultimately never relinquish. A
Colleen Fraser spike helped begin three more in a row to give the Owls a 10-7 edge (extending the run to 7-1), and Keene State made the plays when they needed to including a big block of Sya McKay by Fraser and Connors later in the frame to make it 16-13 when Plymouth had a chance to get back within one. Fraser fired down two more spikes in a row right after as part of another 4-0 push that ended with Bacon stuffing Annalyn Cahill. Newcomers helped the Owls deliver a final blow, with Bacon putting down a kill and Connors an ace before the rookie duo of Bacon and Dottin made it 22-14 with a block. The Panthers made a push late and got as close as four, but Dottin brought KSC to match point at 24-19 with a kill and Emily Sousa's double touch on a set two points later ended it.
Miller finished with 10 kills, helping KSC get off to a faster early start, while Bartels added nine. Fraser finished with eight kills and hit .207. Connors also had eight kills as the Owls had six people finish with at least six kills. Small had team-highs of 19 assists and 15 digs.
After just three blocks in the opening two sets, the Owls dominated at the net late, stuffing eight attacks over the final two sets including five in the fourth set alone. It helped Plymouth hit just .045 in the final two sets and less than .100 in three of the four sets, with KSC holding them to 32 points lower than their previous worst attacking night of the season.
The Owls won with defense, connecting at just a .123 clip themselves, but they had a 48-41 edge in kills and committed only three serve reception errors (making for a 5-3 lead in aces).
McKay led Plymouth with 13 kills on .250 hitting while Sydney Riley had 11 spikes and hit .360.
KSC improved to 5-1 at home and will welcome the University of Massachusetts-Boston (10-7, 2-0 LEC) to town on Saturday (October 10) for a 1:00 p.m. start. The Beacons have won three in a row – two in five sets (Western New England University, Rhode Island College) – since losing five straight. Middle Addie Blomgren is hitting .269 this season with 70 blocks in 17 matches (64 sets).
