NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The Smith College volleyball team played their final game of the season, a 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 25-16) loss to Wheaton College Saturday afternoon in Ainsworth Gymnasium in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action.
The Pioneers end the year 4-22 overall and 1-9 in conference action, while the Lyons end the year 11-18 overall and 3-7 in the NEWMAC.
Wheaton was led by 12 kills from Cathryn MacGregor and 11 from Claire Cansler. First-year McKenna Milholland ended the match with 29 assists, while Stephanie Martin led the team in digs with 24. Milholland and Cansler each concluded the match with two blocks each.
Elizabeth Peay (Lebanon, Conn./Lyman Memorial) led the Pioneers with seven kills, while Maca Rojas (Santiago, Chile/Liceo No. 1 Javiera Carrera) led Smith with 13 assists. Julie Voorhes (Ramona, Calif./Ramona) ended the contest with 13 digs, while Iris Afantchao (Windsor, Conn./Windsor) led all players with four blocks.
Wheaton's attacking got better in each set with the team putting together a .343 attacking percentage in the final set, after finishing with 16 kills and just four errors.
The opening set started as a tightly contested back and forth as both teams tried to figure each other out. With the set deadlocked at 7-7, a Milholland kill sparked Wheaton's offense. The Lyons followed Milholland's kill with kills by MacGregor and Nikita Selivan Nikita Selivan, as well as service aces by Milholland and MacGregor. Peay tried to put her team back into the contest, but was unable to do enough as Wheaton earned the 25-17 win.
A MacGregor ace to start the second game set the tone for the Lyons, who quickly found themselves leading 10-4. Strong hitting by Wheaton and several errors by Smith allowed the Lyons to take a 12-point lead on a handful of occasions en route to the victory.
The Pioneers settled down in the third set and fought the Lyons for several points early on. With the final set tied at 13-13, Selivan handed Wheaton the lead for good with a kill setup by Milholland.
Prior to the game, the Smith College volleyball team honored their lone senior, Julie Voorhes (Ramona, Calif./Ramona).
(Recap courtesy to Wheaton Athletics)
