ELMIRA, N.Y. – The New England College women's volleyball team suffered a straight sets loss at the hands of Gallaudet University on Friday night, kicking off the two-day Elmira Invitational.
The Bison took the first two sets, 25-17 and 25-19, before meeting some resistance in the third set by the Pilgrims. The 'Grims used a quick start and a steady stream of kills from junior LisaRaye Placencio (Maricopa, Ariz.) and service aces by sophomore Maddy Rollinson (Hamden, Conn.) to build a 17-12 advantage.
Gallaudet responded with a 6-0 run fueled by four straight service aces from Aliyah Medearis to take an 18-17 lead. NEC showed plenty of fight as junior Emma Bernard (Chester, N.H.) tied things up with her fifth kill of the night, followed shortly after by two Bernard aces to go up 21-19.
But the star of the night for the Bison was Brielle Worley, who struck four of her game-high 21 kills across the set's final seven points as Gallaudet escaped with a 26-24 match-clinching win.
A trio of Pilgrims shared the team-lead with five kills: Bernard, senior Samantha Winters (Dover, N.H.), and senior Tyra Kelly (Fresno, Calif.). Kelly added 2.0 total blocks, meanwhile Rollinson led the team with 11 assists and four service aces.
The Pilgrims return to the court tomorrow for day two of the Elmira Invitational, facing the hosting-Soaring Eagles at 11:00 AM and Geneva College at 1:00 PM.
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