MANCHESTER, N.H. – Stoutenburgh Gym played host to a very special Senior Day for the Saint Anselm volleyball team Saturday afternoon as the six-member class of 2015 ended its career with a 25-22, 24-26, 25-22, 25-16 win over Northeast-10 Conference foe Pace.
All six seniors saw major court time on Saturday, playing in all four sets and tallying some impressive season marks.
Senior middle Melissa Ouellet (Salem, N.H.) recorded 10 kills on a .333 hitting clip and a career-high seven digs in the victory. She also added a team-high four blocks on the day.
Senior libero Melissa Jewett (Newton, Mass.) tallied 22 digs, marking her 10th time this season reaching the 20-dig plateau. With a career mark of 1,241 digs, she finished ranked fifth in the all-time digs category.
Senior setter Natalie Steinwart (Aurora, Ill.) dished out 52 assists in the four-set win—the second time in the past four matches and the third time in her career she has reached the 50-assist plateau in a single match. With 3,308 total assists, she will finish second in program history with that career category, while taking over the top spot in the all-time record book with an 8.55 kills-per-set average.
Senior Holland McNabb (Huntington Beach, Calif.) tallied seven kills and just one error to go with a pair of digs and a block Saturday afternoon and Shannon Douglas (Rochester, N.H.) picked up seven digs, a kill, an ace and an assist in her final showing.
It was an emotional moment when senior defensive specialist Jenny Doder (St. Louis, Mo.) stepped to the back line for match point. Fans and players alike had tears welling as coincidentally, all six seniors happend to rotate into the lineup at the time. As a truly special moment, Doder lined up her serve and knocked a career-ending ace to cap off the victory.
Despite the seniors carrying much of the work load Saturday, junior outside Lauren Oxley (Bristow, Va.) had another strong performance with a match-high, season-high and career-high 22 kills on .278 hitting. Sophomore CC Chrisom (Dover, N.H.) chipped in 17 digs as a defensive specialist, finishing the year with her fifth straight double-digit dig tally.
The win was also especially important as Saint Anselm (14-12, 6-8 NE-10) posted its first winning record since the turn of the century, when the 2000 Hawks went 19-14 overall and 7-7 in league play.
All six seniors were honored in a ceremony before the match, in which families, friends and teammates shared in a final swan song for the Saint Anselm Volleyball Class of 2015.
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