WEST HARTFORD, Conn. (November 6, 2024) – The Western New England women's volleyball team earned a crucial road victory on Wednesday night, defeating the University of Hartford Hawks 3-1. This win brings the Golden Bears back to .500 in the Conference of New England (CNE) standings.

Records:

• Western New England: 19-6, 4-4 CNE
• University of Hartford: 9-12, 3-5 CNE

How It Happened:
The Golden Bears surrendered the first point to the Hawks but quickly responded, taking their first lead at 2-1 and never trailing again in the opening set. Léa Barber initiated the scoring with a kill, while Taylor Geist, Yemayma Molina, and Alissa Hawes contributed to a swift 5-0 run, giving Western New England an early 5-1 advantage. Following a Hartford timeout, the Golden Bears continued to control the set, with Molina and Isabelle Petty (the team's blocks leader) putting up a strong block. Hartford attempted a comeback when Jordan Murphy registered a kill, but Western New England quickly extended their lead back to five. The Golden Bears pushed their lead to seven, with Barber adding a kill on an assist from Geist for a 14-7 edge. WNE closed out the first set decisively, capitalizing on four straight Hartford errors, while Hawes and Petty sealed the 25-11 set victory with kills. The Golden Bears hit a season-high .387% in the opening set, with 14 of their 25 points coming from kills. Hawes and Barber each recorded four kills to lead the team.

The second set started similarly, with Hartford scoring first, but Western New England soon took a 3-1 lead after a kill by Molina from Geist's assist, coupled with two Hartford errors. Hartford fought back to take their first non-opening-point lead at 6-5, thanks to a block by Sydney Bell, and later extended the lead to 10-8. However, the Golden Bears responded with consecutive kills from Barber and another from Geist to regain an 11-10 lead. A service error by Hartford kicked off a four-point Golden Bears run, highlighted by two aces from Becca Mayer, to establish a 17-14 lead. Western New England closed the set with eight of the last 11 points, winning 25-18 and taking a 2-0 match lead. Despite giving away nine points on errors, their seven service aces, led by Mayer, secured the set.

Hartford opened the third set by scoring the first two points, but Western New England quickly responded with three of their own to take a 3-2 lead. The Hawks then went on their first sustained run of the match, scoring five of the next six points to regain a 6-4 advantage. After the Golden Bears closed within 10-8, Hartford seized control, scoring six straight points to build a 16-8 lead. Western New England managed to chip away at the deficit with a kill and block from Molina and a service ace by Barber, but the Hawks' eight-point lead proved too much to overcome. Hartford took the third set 25-19 to avoid a sweep. The Golden Bears' hitting percentage dropped to .044% in the third set, tallying 10 kills alongside eight attacking errors, though they also recorded three blocks.

In the fourth set, Western New England scored the first point for the first time, taking a quick lead off a Hartford error. The set remained close, with neither team leading by more than two points through the first 12 points. Geist led the Golden Bears with two consecutive service aces and a set assist. The Hawks briefly led 11-8, but Western New England fought back to tie it at 12, thanks to a service ace and kill from Barber and consistent kills from Hawes. The teams traded points up to 16-16, before WNE pulled ahead 17-16. Trailing 20-19, Western New England scored five straight points, with two kills by Molina and one from Ava Cariddi, to take a 23-20 lead. Although Hartford pulled within one at 24-23, Hawes sealed the match with a decisive kill, giving the Golden Bears a 25-23 fourth-set win and a 3-1 match victory.

Inside the Lines:

• After struggling in the second and third sets, the Golden Bears rebounded with a .250 hitting percentage in the fourth set, collecting 13 kills.
• The Golden Bears tallied 48 kills, 14 service aces, and multiple blocks as a team.
• Alissa Hawes led the team with 14 kills, while Léa Barber added 12 kills.
• Yemayma Molina contributed seven kills, three solo blocks, and two block assists.
• WNE's 14 total service aces included five from Barber.
• Taylor Geist recorded six kills and 32 assists.
• Hartford's Tiffany Mendez led all players with 15 kills on 50 total attacks.

Coaches Corner:

• Matt Lein was asked post game about how the team can clean up their attacking errors and turn them into points in Saturday's important CNE match at Gordon. "Yeah that was definitely the game plan going into tonight, just minimize our errors. I think it's continuing to train what's working while also finding ways to stay strong both mental and physically."
• Lein was also asked how much standings watching he and his team is doing throughout the season. With one final match remaining in CNE Play. the stakes are at the highest they've been. "You don't really watch as long as you're winning and then when you accumulate a couple losses, you start watching a lot more. We knew after our loss to Roger Williams that we had to win out this week to have the best chance at making the conference tournament and I think knowing that helped us. Now we need to go take care of business on Saturday at Gordon."

Up Next:

• Western New England will host Union College (N.Y.) for Senior Night on Friday, November 8, at 6:00 PM at the Anthony S. Caprio Alumni Healthful Living Center.