BEVERLY, Mass. - The Endicott women's volleyball team rallied to defeat Brandeis 3-2 on Friday evening in the confines of the MacDonald Gymnasium.
Endicott cruised in the first set, winning 25-14, before falling by the same score in the second to even the match at 1-1. The Judges would then go up 2-1 by taking a convincing third set 25-19 before the Gulls would counter with a 25-18 fourth set win to tie the best-of-five at 2-2. Behind a dominant defensive effort in the fifth, Endicott pulled out a 15-11 victory to claim the 3-2 win.
Outside Emma Mancini (Lynnfield, Mass.) produced 21 kills with seven errors on 49 attempts for an efficient .286 average to lead all players. The senior also added five digs, four blocks and an ace to her night. Fellow outside Amanda Guilbert (Hopkinton, Mass.), who made her first collegiate start in the match, went off for 12 kills and five assist blocks in the win, both career-highs.
With the defense leading the way to victory, the Gulls out-dug the Judges 71 to 60 as three players picked up more than 10 digs. Leading the effort was setter Zoey Gifford (Natick, Mass.) who logged a team-best 17 digs to go with her 42 assists while libero Mackenzie Kennedy (Andover, Mass.) was right behind, finishing with 16 in the win to go with five assists. Defensive specialist Nichole Trudon (Coventry, Conn.) finished with 11 digs, setting a new high for the season.
For the Judges, Emma Bartlett (Duxbury, Mass.) posted a team-best 16 kills and seven blocks in the setback, while libero Yvette Cho (San Diego, Calif.) finished with 22 digs to lead all players.
BEYOND THE BOX
Endicott has now won the last five meetings between the two programs, dating back to 2013.
In the three sets that Endicott won, the Gulls held the Judges to a negative hitting percentage. Brandeis hit -.034 in the first, -.049 in the third and -.130 in the fifth.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott travels to Boston, Mass. on Saturday to take on Coast Guard and Emerson in a non-conference tri-match at 2 and 4 PM. Brandeis is off until next Thursday when they play host to Emerson at 7 PM.
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(Photo credit - David Le '10)