WORCESTER -- The WPI women's volleyball team pushed No. 24 Babson to five sets Wednesday night at Harrington Auditorium, but the Beavers rallied to take the deciding set and hand the Engineers a 3-2 NEWMAC setback. WPI won the first and third sets before Babson closed out the match, 23-25, 25-20, 22-25, 25-17, 15-10.
The Engineers fell to 9-10 overall and 2-4 in NEWMAC play, while Babson improved to 14-4 and 5-1 in conference action.
Bridget Spees (Saint Johns, FL) and
Olivia Hutchinson (Erie, PA) paced the WPI attack with 12 kills apiece.
Zeala VanDamme (San Diego, CA) added 11 kills while hitting .350 and contributed four total blocks.
Jennah DiMartino (Mission Viejo, CA) led the Engineers with 19 digs and added two service aces.
Amelia Lynch (Charlottesville, VA) doled out 23 assists while
Lauren Boycourt (San Diego, CA) recorded 17 helpers. WPI totaled 50 kills, 74 digs and eight blocks on the night.
Babson finished with 63 kills, 73 digs and nine blocks, while recording 17 service aces.
Hailey Fouche (Montclair, NJ) led all players with 16 kills, and
Zoe Ackerman (Aurora, CO) handed out 50 assists and served five aces for the Beavers.
WPI claimed the opening set, 25-23, in a tightly contested frame. After the teams traded points throughout the middle portion, the Engineers held on to take the two-point decision. Spees finished with 12 kills and helped anchor the WPI defense with 18 digs.
Babson evened the match with a 25-20 victory in the second set. The Beavers built momentum late in the frame and used a strong finish to level the contest at one set apiece. WPI responded in the third, edging Babson 25-22 to regain the lead in the match. The Engineers produced 11 kills with just one attack error in the set.
Babson seized control in the fourth set, using a 7-1 stretch to turn an 8-5 lead into a 15-6 advantage on the way to a 25-17 victory. The Beavers carried that momentum into the deciding set, where WPI rallied to tie the score at 4-4 before Babson pulled away with a three-point run. WPI closed within 13-10, but Babson secured the match with the final two points, including a block by
Ailsa Munro (Sylmar, CA) and
Hailey Fouche (Montclair, NJ).
WPI returns to Harrington Auditorium Saturday to host Emerson in a NEWMAC match beginning at 1pm. Babson also returns to conference action Saturday, entering Mount Holyoke at 1pm in Babson Park.
