Holmes paces Golden Bears with nine kills, Matthews adds eight

NEWPORT, R.I. (October 30, 2018) – The sixth-seeded Western New England University volleyball team was eliminated from the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-23, 25-23) loss to third-seeded Salve Regina University in the quarterfinals on Tuesday evening at Rodgers Recreation Center.

Salve Regina (21-8) advances to the CCC semifinals to face No. 2 seed Wentworth in Boston on Thursday night, while Western New England's season comes to a close with a record of 9-20.

Top Performers
The Golden Bears were led by junior middle blocker Cassandra Holmes (Ellington, Conn.), who posted a .368 hitting percentage with a team-high nine kills.

Junior outside hitter Ashley Matthews (Salem, N.H.) finished with eight kills and eight digs, while sophomore setter Jenna McCormack (Nashua, N.H.) distributed 29 assists to go with 11 digs and three aces.

Salve Regina freshman Nicole Karabaich (Greenlawn, N.Y.) recorded a match-best 14 kills for the Seahawks.

Defensively, senior Megan Parnham (Tulsa, Okla.) paced all players with a match-high 20 digs.

Game Review
Salve Regina, which trailed 2-1 early in the opening set, pulled ahead with a 3-0 run and never trailed the rest of the way. The Seahawks stretched their advantage to six (11-5) on a Golden Bear attack error and eventually went on to claim a 25-17 triumph.

Western New England played from behind in the early stages of the second set before claiming its first lead (15-14) on a kill by Holmes. The Golden Bears held a three-point edge (22-19) following a service ace by senior Jenna Ferguson (Ellington, Conn.) late in the frame, but Salve Regina rallied to take the lead with a 4-0 run and won six of the final seven points overall to open up a 2-0 lead in the match.

In the third set, Western New England built a 5-1 lead early before the Seahawks answered with an 8-0 run. The Golden Bears then regained the momentum with a 6-1 run, and the two teams continued to go back and forth with Western New England establishing a late 22-20 advantage on a kill by Matthews. Salve Regina rallied one final time, however, as the home team turned in a 5-1 run to seal the set and the match.

Notes
• Ferguson finished with ten digs, two kills and two aces in her final collegiate contest.
• Western New England hit a match-best .205 in the second set and .160 overall.