WORCESTER, Mass. – The Saint Anselm College volleyball team did not lose a single set in Saturday afternoon's tri-match at host Assumption College, blanking both the Greyhounds and the Mavericks of Mercy College by a combined 6-0 score. With two victories on the afternoon, the Hawks improve to 7-11 overall on the season and 2-5 within the Northeast-10 Conference.
The Hawks squared off against the Greyhounds of Assumption College in a conference match, collecting three wins in three sets 25-19, 25-20 and 25-22. Charlotte Tencza (Greenfield, Mass.) posted a team-leading 14 kills against Assumption and tied her career-best total of 21 digs in the first game of the afternoon. Tencza also recorded 21 digs against at Post University on Sept. 20, 2009.
Kyla Gustavson (Nashua, N.H.) notched 12 kills and a team-best .294 hitting percentage, posting 10 of her final 12 kills in the last two sets to secure the victory. Natalie Steinwart (Aurora, Ill.), the Hawks primary setter, set up 31 Hawks kills in the first game of the tri-match. Margaret Tereschuk (Mission Viejo, Calif.) tied her career-high total with four service aces, as she had previously recorded four service aces against Le Moyne on Oct. 17, 2009 and against Assumption on Nov. 1, 2009.
For the Greyhounds, Sam Lupinski and Lauren Ostafin each recorded seven kills apiece in the three-set loss. Kristen Flatekval assisted 22 of the Greyhounds 24 kills and Jess Reimers led Assumption defensively with 18 kills to her credit. Saint Anselm has not lost a set to Assumption dating back to a 3-2 loss on Nov. 1, 2009.
Saint Anselm posted their third victory of the season against Mercy in the rubber game of Saturday afternoon's tri-match, sweeping all three sets by scores of 25-19, 25-19 and 25-21. The Hawks have now won four straight games against the Mavericks.
Saint Anselm held a commanding lead in the first set against Mercy, at one point holding a 14-5 advantage. Steinwart recorded two service aces and a kill in a row to help grow the lead in the first set. Tencza recorded a team-best four kills in the first set without making a single error. Three different Hawks recorded three digs as well, including Tencza, Gustavson, Tereschuk and Holland McNabb (Huntington Beach, Calif.)
Cumulatively, Tencza and Gustavson led the Hawks in the second game against Mercy with nine kills each. Steinwart contributed with 27 assists and a career-best four service aces against the Mavericks. Defensively, Tereschuk led the way with double-digit digs (10) for the third time in her last four games. Gustavson also recorded a career-high .304 attack percentage against Mercy with only two errors in 23 total chances. Melissa Ouellet (Salem, N.H.) contributed two blocks to lead the team in that category.
For the Mavericks, Brenna White led the charge with 14 kills on the afternoon. McKenna Ronan posted 17 assists for Mercy and Ericka Kane contributed defensively with eight digs. As a team, the Mavericks made 27 errors in three sets while the Hawks made only 12 in the game.
The Hawks return to action Friday, Oct. 21 as they host the visiting Owls of Southern Connecticut State University in a 7:30 p.m. contest. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by friending us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).
