Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--The Smith College volleyball team snapped a three match losing skid with a 3-2 (22-25, 22-25, (25-16, 25-21, 15-11) comeback win over Framingham State University in a tri-match with MIT on Saturday. The Pioneers fell 3-0 (9-25, 12-25, 19-25) in a league match to the host Engineers in the day's first match.
Smith, which was 0-6 in five set matches a year ago, is now 3-1 in those matches. All four have seen the Pioneers fall behind 0-2 before rallying to force a decisive fifth set. The Pioneers are now 9-4 overall, and 2-3 against NEWMAC competition.
Bethany Ashworth (North Falmouth, Mass./Bourne) had 36 assists, while
Mei-Li Smith (Cypress, Calif./Cypress) had nine kills, seven assists, and 17 digs for Smith.
Paige Sarlandt (Cloverdale, Calif./Cloverdale) hit .464 with 14 kills, along with a solo block and four block assists, and
Rosa Drummond (Rye, N.H./Portsmouth) added 16 kills, eight digs, and a pair each of solo blocks and block assists.
After falling in each of the first two sets, Smith raced out to a 6-1 lead over Framingham State in the third set and never looked back. The Pioneers led wire to wire in the set, going up by as many as 11 at 23-12 on a kill from Sarlandt. A Framingham State service error and a poor set closed out the third set.
In the fourth set, Smith turned a small 5-4 deficit into an 11-8 lead on a kill from
Mei-Li Smith (Cypress, Calif./Cypress). The Rams stayed close, tying the set at 20 on a kill by Julia Wan, but Smith closed out the frame by scoring four of the final five points, including a kill and a solo block from Drummond that broke the tie.
Set five saw Smith open up a 4-1 lead, and though the Rams would rally to knot the score at six, the Pioneers scored the next three points en route to a 15-11 set win.
Earlier in the day, Smith fell to MIT. The Pioneers struggled, hitting .017 for the match. Drummond led Smith with five kills, while
Mei-Li Smith (Cypress, Calif./Cypress) had three kills, a service ace, and nine digs.
Smith returns home for a league matchup with Emerson College on Tuesday, October 1, at 7 p.m.
