BOSTON, Mass. – The Endicott women's volleyball team won for the fifth time in their last six matches on Wednesday evening by defeating GNAC opponent Simmons 3-1 (25-17, 25-23, 19-25, 25-19) behind 14 kills (.295) from sophomore outside hitter Tori McIntyre (San Diego, Calif.), 43 assists and 11 digs from senior setter Alleigh VandeMerkt (Riverside, Ill.), and 18 digs from sophomore libero Erika Trudon (Coventry, Conn.).
The Gulls improved to 7-4 overall on the season and 4-1 away from MacDonald Gymnasium with their non-conference win over the Sharks. Endicott, recently ranked #8 in the NEWVA regional poll, will take on the #3 and #11 ranked teams in New England on Saturday, September 20th in Williams and Trinity (Conn.). Endicott has never beaten Williams in eight previous meetings but are coming off a 3-1 victory over Trinity at home.
Against Simmons, McIntyre paced a Gulls offensive attack that sported a .171 hitting percentage with a team-high 14 kills on 44 swings (.295). McIntyre was complemented by a trio of attackers in junior opposite Lexi Watts (San Diego, Calif.), sophomore middle Hayley Knapp (Valencia, Calif.), and freshman outside Elyse Morgan (Holbrook, Mass.) who combined for 26 kills. Freshman Lauren Sheehan (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) and sophomore Kelli Sugrue (Tewksbury, Mass.) each contributed with three and two kills in the win.
Defensively, Endicott totaled 10 blocks on two solo stuffs at the net by Watts and Knapp and eight assisted blocks including two apiece for Knapp, Sugrue, and Morgan. Trudon was a presence defensively with 18 digs with VandeMerkt and McIntyre each accumulating 11 digs. Defensive specialist Cydney Pierce (Santa Barbara, Calif.) had a solid match holding off the Simmons attack with nine digs.
Simmons was led by first year middle Emme Ashby (Payson, Ariz.) who struck a match-high 17 kills on a .282 hitting percentage with a solo and assisted block. Sophomore libero Alex Itasaka (Bradford, Mass.) led a trio of Sharks players in double figures for digs with 26.
Endicott improved to 4-2 all-time versus Simmons dating back to their first meeting in the 1994 season. The Gulls have now won four straight over Simmons, recording victories in 1997, 1999, 2012, and now 2014.
