SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 4, 2023) – The Western New England women's volleyball team dropped a five-set match to the visiting Hawks of the University of Hartford on Wednesday evening in a non-conference match from the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Records:

• Western New England: 6-8
• University of Hartford: 2-5

How it Happened:
After being up two sets to none, the Western New England women's volleyball team saw the visiting Hawks of the University of Hartford storm all the way back and complete the comeback, dropping the Golden Bears by a final score of 3-2. Western New England held the lead for nearly the entire first set, not allowing Hartford to build any momentum in the early going. Alissa Hawes led the match off with a kill before Hartford would take their only lead of the match at 2-1. WNE would get a kill from Hailey Sell and Yemayma Molina to get back on top, and they would never lose their lead from there. Midway through the first set, Western New England would lead by as many as four before the Hawks came back with four straight points to even the score at 13-13. Western New England would take exception, ripping off the next six points when Wlla Soutter, Isabelle Petty, and Becca Mayer helped Western New England take a 19-13 lead. Elizabeth Long would finish off the 25^th point of the set for WNE as the Golden Bears took a 25-17 first set victory.

More of the same would come about in the second set, as Western New England would come away with another victory. Hartford would control the momentum in the early goings of the second set, grabbing a five-point rally to take an 11-6 lead. Western New England would respond, picking up five straight points with help from Ella Soutter and Elizabeth Long as WNE retook the lead. The lead went back and forth between the two teams before a service ace from Hailey Sell set Western New England ahead by three points at 23-20. The Golden Bears would finish off the match with a 25-22 victory, taking the first two sets from the newest member of the CCC.

Hartford opened the scoring in the third set, though Western New England began the set with a four-point run after falling behind 4-1 quickly before the Golden Bears would get back in the lead with attack errors from the Hawks. Nearing the middle of the set, Western New England would turn it on, grabbing eight straight points with kills from Alissa Hawes and blocks from Isabelle Petty and Ella Soutter to take an 18-14 lead. Hartford would storm back with a run of their own, grabbing six straight points and moving the score from 21-18 to 24-21 in favor of the Hawks. Western New England would attempt a comeback, though the Hawks would take the third set 25-23.

Hartford held the momentum in the fourth set, allowing WNE to take a 4-3 lead in the set and would not see a lead after that. The Hawks would grab points in rapid succession and would take a four-point lead in the middle of the set, leading 16-12. With Western New England pressing on a kill from Isabelle Petty, the Hawks would grab four straight points and would put the set away with a service error by the Golden Bears, forcing a fifth and final set.

The blue and gold got started with a quick 3-0 run out of the date when Alissa Hawes and Yemayma Molina threw down spikes to the floor before Hartford would begin to build their momentum. Western New England's three-point lead would evaporate, seeing Hartford get within one point before a match point for WNE would come around after a kill from Isabelle Petty, making the score 14-12. Hartford would finish the match after saving match point with a 4-0 run, as Western New England would come away with a 3-2 loss in the match.

Around the Horn:

• Both teams nearly hit the same percentage in the match, with Hartford hitting.115 and WNE hitting.116 as a team.
• WNE tallied 56 kills in the match, led by Isabelle Petty, who tossed down 17 kills in the match.
• Taylor Geist and Hailey Sell combined for 44 assists in the match.
• Becca Mayer (29) and Alissa Hawes (20) both had over twenty digs in the match.
• This is the first all-time meeting between the two programs.

 
Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE will host Mount Holyoke College on Friday, October 6, from the Alumni Healthful Living Center at 6:00 PM.