Endicott Sweeps Springfield, Falls to UMass Boston

BOSTON, Mass. - The Endicott women's volleyball team split a pair of non-conference matches on Saturday, sweeping Springfield 3-0 before falling to UMass Boston 3-1.

With the split, Endicott's record moves to 14-10 on the season as the Gulls have just four Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) matches remaining in the regular season. Prior to being swept by Endicott, Springfield, the second ranked team in the most recent NEWVA regional poll, swept UMass Boston to earn the split. The Pride now sit at 19-3, while UMass Boston moves to 13-9 on the year.

MATCH ONE: Endicott 3 Springfield 0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-21)

In the first match of the day for Endicott, the Gulls took on a Springfield squad that was coming off of sweeping host UMass Boston 3-0. The Gulls were able to out-hit the Pride by a wide margin, finishing with a .243 to .071 edge. Freshman Colleen McAvoy (Coventry, Conn.) led all players with her .600 average, posting 10 kills on 15 attempts. McAvoy was also a force defensively at the net and from the service line, posting match-bests in blocks with four (2S, 2A) and aces with three.

Senior Emma Mancini (Lynnfied, Mass.) led all players with her 16 kills on 42 attempts as she hit .238 and added eight digs. Setter Zoey Gifford (Natick, Mass.) posted 33 assists as she orchestrated the Gulls' attack. Mackenzie Kennedy (Andover, Mass.) and Nicholle Trudon (Coventry, Conn.) finished first and second in the match with 14 and 13 digs, respectively.

MATCH TWO: Endicott 1 UMass Boston 3 (14-25, 25-15, 16-25, 16-25)

In the final match of the day, Endicott could not stop UMass Boston's attack as the Beacons were able to knock off the Gulls 3-1. UMass Boston hit .365 to just .092 for Endicott, while holding a 56 to 32 edge in kills.

Leading the Endicott effort was junior Alex Dippel (Fallston, Md.), who finished with a team-best 10 kills. Sophomore Nicole Winkler (Southborough, Mass.) was just behind, finishing with seven kills and a team-best .417 average.

Libero Mackenzie Kennedy again led all Gulls with 15, while Gifford finished with 29 assists, three aces and five digs in the setback.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott will play host to the University of New England on Wednesday night at 7:00 PM in CCC play. Springfield returns to action on Tuesday when they travel to NEWMAC rival Babson while UMass Boston hosts LEC foe Rhode Island College on Tuesday as well.

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)