WATERVILLE, Maine – The Endicott women's volleyball team earned a pair of hard-fought wins over New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) foes Amherst College and host Colby College on Saturday afternoon at Wadsworth Gymnasium. In match one, Endicott defeated Amherst, 3-2, in comeback fashion (22-25, 10-25, 25-20, 25-22, 15-5) before completing the tri-match sweep against Colby, 3-0 (25-14, 25-14, 25-13).
ENDICOTT 3, AMHERST 2 (22-25, 10-25, 25-20, 25-22, 15-5)
Trailing 2-0 against the Mammoths (8-1), the Gulls' attack rallied behind a three-set combined hitting percentage of .309 (40K-11E-94TA) to complete the come-from-behind win. Endicott's defense also stepped up too in crunch time as the Gulls registered 44 digs, seven blocks, and limited Amherst to a slim .130 hitting percentage (28K-16E-92TA).
Colleen McAvoy (Coventry, Conn.) highlighted Endicott's efforts in the victory with a match-high 17 kills (.519) to go along with two solo blocks and three block assists. Remi Quesnelle (Sunderland, Mass.) also notched 11 kills, while Nicole Winkler (Southborough, Mass.) chipped in with 10 kills (.429).
Meanwhile, Zoey Gifford (Natick, Mass.) and Lauren McGrath (Franklin, Mass.) ran the offense via 37 and 15 assists, respectively.
On the defensive end, Mackenzie Kennedy (Andover, Mass.) collected a season-high 31 digs. It marks her first match with 30-plus digs this season and ninth with 20 or more (counting Colby's match).
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Endicott handed Amherst its first loss of the season. Prior to today's match, the Mammoths had won eight straight matches, which included a 3-0 win over Colby earlier in the day.
- Endicott and Amherst are ranked No. 6 and No. 9, respectively, in the latest New England Women's Volleyball Association (NEWVA) Regional Poll.
- McAvoy took over when the Gulls needed it most as the sophomore middle posted a 13K-1E-17TA (.706) line in sets 3-5.
- Kennedy had exactly eight digs in sets two, three, and four. She also went a perfect 28-for-28 on serve-receive and saw 11 of her 28 receptions lead to kills (.393, highest percentage, min. 20 attempts).
- The Gulls have won three-straight matches against Amherst.
- Endicott broke ties of 19-19 in set three and 18-18 in set four prior to dominating set five with a 7-2 run and never looked back.
ENDICOTT 3, COLBY 0 (25-14, 25-14, 25-13)
In match two of the day, Endicott used an all-around effort to come away with a 2-0 record in Maine on Saturday.
Winkler paced the Gulls's offense with eight kills (.636), while Quesnelle added six, and the duo of Amanda Gilbert (Hopkinton, Mass.) and Carley Gagnon (Goffstown, N.H.) both put away five swings apiece.
Gifford also produced her team-leading eighth double-double of the season via 10 assists and 12 digs.
Meanwhile, Kennedy rounded out the list of individual highlights with a match-high 21 digs.
Defensively, Endicott limited Colby to a .028 hitting percentage, which included negative hitting percentages in the first set (-.023) and third set (-.062) by the Mules.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Endicott is 7-3 all-time against Colby
- The Gulls are 3-2 on the road this season and 5-1 in neutral site matches.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (9-4) travels to Nichols on Tuesday, September 24 for its Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) opener at 7 PM.
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(Photo Credit - Nick Grace '20)