WORCESTER, Mass. – On Tuesday night (Oct. 13) the Worcester State Lancers sought their first Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) win of the season, but came out short as the Westfield State Owls took the 3-0 win with set scores of 25-10, 25-19, and 25-15.
With the win the Owls improve to 2-2 MASCAC and 7-12 overall. The Lancers drop to 0-3 in conference play and 6-13 overall.
The Lancers marked the first two points of the match, as junior Jamika Townsend (Virginia Beach, Va.) recorded a kill and senior Jennifer Cabral (Swansea, Mass.) listed the team's first service ace of the night. Although, the Owls came out fighting and took the lead off a kill from senior Kendyl Haney (Ashland, Mass.) and two service aces from freshman Lizzie Taylor (Medfield, Mass.). The Owls kept their points rolling as they held the Lancers to only eight more points in the first set, resulting in the 25-10 win.
The second match of the game was much closer than the first as the Lancers rallied with the Owls, resulting in tied scores at nine and 10 on a kill from Worcester State's Cabral and Westfield's sophomore Courtney Ryan (Quincy, Mass.). It wasn't long after that the Owls went on a scoring binge off three kills from Haney and Worcester State errors to increase the Owls lead. Worcester State rallied back once again, but the Owls kept attacking and scored seven unanswered points to take the big lead and eventually win the set.
The Lancers had a chance to stay in the game with a win in the third set, but a group of errors resulted in a chance for the Owls to seal the deal and take the 3-0 win.
Westfield State recorded an overall .367 attack percentage throughout the night, while Worcester State logged a .040 attack percentage overall.
Westfield State's Haney recorded a game-high 15 kills on the night with a remarkable .483 attack percentage. Ryan marked a .500 attack percentage (2-14), while senior Casey Howe (Chelmsford, Mass.) recorded a .400 attack percentage (6-15). Ryan also recorded a game-high 33 assists on the night.
Defensively for the Owls, Taylor led the team with 16 digs, while senior Shannon Shea (Chelmsford, Mass.) added in 10.
Worcester State's junior Valerie Hoyle (Bridgewater, Mass.) and senior Meghan Deighan (Lynnfield, Mass.) held the team's best attack percentages with .375 and .308, respectively. Cabral led the team with seven kills and 13 digs, while freshman setter Alexandra Nolan (Melrose, Mass.) led the team with 12 assists on the night.
Next up the Lancers will face Rhode Island College for a non-conference matchup on Thursday (Oct. 15). The Owls will also resume play on Thursday as they will host East Nazarene College.