QUINCY, Mass. (September 1, 2023) – The Western New England women's volleyball team couldn't solve the high-powered attack of the Lions of Eastern Nazarene, dropping the season opener 3-0 at the ENC Invitational.
Records:
- Western New England: 0-1
- Eastern Nazarene: 1-0
How it Happened:
The Golden Bears got their first point of the 2023 season on a kill from
Leah Warren, assisted by
Taylor Geist, as the Golden Bears got off the ground quickly. Eastern Nazarene would make a big run after the kill from
Warren, taking a 8-2 lead in the first set. WNE would come back and cut ENC's lead to six, falling behind 13-7 after points from
Geist, and Liz Long. WNE would be unable to climb back in the opening set, falling 25-11.
Eastern Nazarene would open the second set by grabbing a quick 3-0 lead, though the Golden Bears would take advantage of an attack error by the Lions and a kill from
Alissa Hawes, getting right back into the second set. WNE would never hold a lead in set two, however, getting within one point of a tie before ENC would grab the next six points, going ahead 11-4. The Lions would take a commanding lead in the second set and would never look back, defeating WNE 25-18. Down 22-11, Western New England would put two sperate three-point rally's together as
Isabelle Petty,
Becca Mayer and Liz Long would help the Golden Bears look to get back into set two before surrendering the final points.
Western New England would take their first lead of the match in the third set when
Yemayma Molina sent down a thunderous kill on an assist from
Hailey Sell, giving WNE a 7-6 lead. Points would go back and forth through the middle of the set with the Golden Bears taking an 11-8 lead at one point. WNE increased their lead to four on a service ace from
Hailey Sell, though Eastern Nazarene would not go down without a fight, grabbing the next 13 points in a row as Telma Zelaya would serve the Lions back into the lead and control the set, as WNE would see themselves drop a 25-17 decision in set three, dropping the match 3-0.
Inside the Box:
- Isabelle Petty led WNE with five kills in the match, hitting .143. Hailey Sell collected nine assists in the losing effort.
- As a team. WNE would hit .080 as a team while the Lions connected for .265% hitting.
- ENC collected 34 kills in the match to WNE's 21. ENC grabbed 19 aces in the win while the Golden Bears collected six.
Up Next on the Schedule:
- WNE will continue day two of the ENC Tournament, taking on William Smith College and Linfield University on Saturday, September 2.
