WORCESTER -- Senior setter Lily Eldridge (Danvers, MA) stuffed the stat sheets with six kills, 14 assists, six digs, three total blocks and three service aces to propel visiting WPI to a 3-0 triumph over city rival Worcester State in a non-conference volleyball contest played Thursday evening on Brissette Court.  The Crimson and Gray emerged victorious by set scores of 25-16, 25-18 and 25-18.
 
With the win, WPI moves over .500 for the first time in 2024 while the Lancers dip to 2-5 overall.
 
WPI got out to a quick start in the first set scoring five of the first six points as four different Engineers all tallied kills. The Lancers climbed back bringing the opening set to within two kills and in addition to taking advantage of multiple Engineers' mishaps. Worcester State then marked a few errors as Eldridge rallied for three aces giving the Crimson and Gray a 14-6 lead after a five-point run.
 
Emily Hudson (Melrose, MA) and Fiona Gillis (Manchester, NH) then struck back with successful attacks of their own leading to back-to-back aces by Victoria Escuer (Caracas, Venezuela). Zeala VanDamme (San Diego, CA) joined the attacking with a kill and ace to bring the set to 22-13 before the Lancers fell out of reach.
 
The Crimson and Gray stayed on track as ball handling errors and bad sets gave WPI the jump in the second set. Gillis kept the attack game rolling with a pair of kills before Audrey Stroupe (Leesburg, VA) and VanDamme chipped in as the trio accounted for six kills bringing the Engineers to a 13-10 lead which would be the closest margin of the set.
 
The Lancer attack posted a match-high 10 errors. Anastasia Kelnik (Fair Lawn, NJ), Eldridge and Stroupe polished off the second set with the final successful strikes for 2-0 match lead.
 
Eldridge, Kelnik and VanDamme posted kills early as the third set started out at 5-5 and stayed close as Hudson and Gillis came in to tack on a few more to keep the Lancers at bay. Escuer then recorded her third ace of the evening before Stroupe finalized the match sweep with back-to-back kills.

Both teams turn their attention to tri-matches on Saturday.  WPI is back at home for the first time in two weeks, entertaining Keene State at 11am and Western New England at 3pm while the Lancers venture to New London, Connecticut for an 11am meeting with host Coast Guard and a 1pm showdown with the Camels of Conn College at 1pm.