Western New England posts season-best .415 hitting percentage    

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (September 21, 2016) – The Western New England University volleyball team cruised to a 3-0 (25-11, 25-10, 25-13) victory over Eastern Nazarene College this evening in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Top Performers
• Junior middle hitter Carly Skibinski (Milford, N.J.) recorded a match-high ten kills with just one error in 15 attempts (.600). Skibinski also made a significant defensive impact, tallying three solo blocks.
• Senior setter Jenna Leuck (Dumont, N.J.) dished out 31 assists to go with a match-best ten digs.
• Freshman outside hitter Ashley Matthews (Salem, N.H.) hit .700 with seven kills and no errors in ten attempts. She also tallied seven digs, two assists, two service aces and one block assist.

• Eastern Nazarene junior setter Lauryl Berger (Laurel, Del.) finished with 13 assists and four digs.

Match Review
• Western New England took control early in the first set following a 3-3 tie, as the Golden Bears posted a 4-0 run and won 12 of the next 13 points overall to open up a 15-4 lead. The Lions were unable to bring their deficit under ten points the rest of the way, dropping the first set 25-11.
• The Golden Bears again raced out to an early lead in the second set, but Eastern Nazarene trailed by just six points (16-10) following a 3-0 run that was capped by a kill from freshman outside hitter Annie Heller (Hudson, N.H.). Western New England closed out the frame with a 9-0 run, however, to claim a 2-0 lead in the match.
• The Golden Bears continued their dominance in the third set, rolling to an early 7-1 lead that forced Eastern Nazarene to call a timeout. The Lions closed the gap to five (9-4) after winning three of the next five points, but Western New England pulled away midway through the set and didn't look back, completing the 3-0 sweep. 

Notes
• Western New England's .415 team hitting percentage represents its best of the season. The Golden Bears committed just nine attack errors with 43 kills in 82 total attempts. Four different players hit .400 or above, including Matthews and classmate Cassandra Holmes (Ellington, Conn.), who combined for 15 kills with no errors in 20 attempts.
• Sophomore middle hitter Cheyenne Garcia (Dover, N.H.) established a new career-high with nine kills.
• Western New England's 3-0 sweep marks the team's fourth three-set victory this season.
• Leuck recorded her fourth 30+ assist effort this season.

Up Next
Western New England (9-3, 2-0 CCC) will be off until next Tuesday, when the Golden Bears travel to Bristol, R.I. for a key CCC showdown at Roger Williams. Eastern Nazarene (3-6, 0-1 CCC) returns home to host the Hawks on Saturday at 11 a.m.