WALTHAM, Mass. – The regionally-ranked Saint Anselm College women's volleyball team was defeated by Bentley University, 3-2, on Tuesday night during the Northeast-10 Conference Quarterfinals match. The Hawks concluded the season with a 14-11 overall record and were 5-6 in conference play.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm awaits the 2023 NCAA Division II Selection Show, which will be aired on Monday, Nov. 20, for the chance to clinch their fifth NCAA postseason appearance.
Score: Saint Anselm 2, Bentley 3 (25-18, 25-11, 30-32, 23-25, 15-9)
Records: Saint Anselm (14-11); Bentley (22-5)
Location: Waltham, Mass. (Charles A. Dana Center)
Date: Tuesday, November 14, 2023
Attendance: 234
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Freshmen Hollyn Frano (Cave Creek, Ariz.) and Melis Kocak (East Greenwich, R.I.) opened the scoring for the Hawks to give the team a 4-3 advantage. After Bentley's Caitlin Wunder tied the set with her kill, Saint Anselm would connect four points featuring a service ace from senior Alina Barbarena (Los Angeles, Calif.) and another kill by Frano to go up 8-4. The Falcons answered by tallying four consecutive kills to even the score once again at 8-8. Sophomore Abigail Macalaguim (Chula Vista, Calif.) registered her first kill of the night to give the Hawks a 12-11 edge before Bentley generated a seven-to-two run to go ahead 18-14 late in the set. Frano notched two more kills and Barbarena served another ace to narrow the Falcon's lead to just one point, but Bentley would go on to win the next seven of eight points to take set one by a 25-18 final.
- The Falcons got an early 4-0 lead to start the second set of the match with Natalie Thom posting three aces. Frano would record the first two kills of the second set for Saint Anselm to make it 7-3, Bentley. Shortly after, Barbarena produced her third service ace followed by her first kill of the match to narrow Bentley's advantage to three points. Senior Audrey Wetjen (Henderson, Nev.) and freshman Sam Pila (Melbourne, Australia) were each credited with a block for the Hawks to disrupt a 4-0 run. Senior Emma Adams (Gary, Texas) and Kocak registered the next two kills for Saint Anselm. However, Bentley would then go on a 10-1 run to take a 2-0 advantage in the match.
- At the start of the third set, both teams exchanged early points with freshman Miia Dembski (Lancaster, N.Y.) notching her first kill and Barbarena serving another ace to even the score at 5-5. Wetjen tallied a pair of kills while senior Kaitlin Brown (Glendale, Ariz.) recorded her second kill to tie the set at 9-9. The Hawks continued to battle with Frano and Dembski each posting two kills apiece to keep the score close as the set progressed. A kill from Rachel Vitko put Bentley up 22-20, but after a Saint Anselm timeout, the Hawks strung three points together featuring kills from Adams and Frano to make it 23-22. After the Falcons made it 24-23 thanks to blocks by Vitko and Elizabeth Blinn, Saint Anselm kept fighting and forced the game into eight set points. On the fifth set-point for the Hawks, Brown would seal the 32-30 win with a service ace to make it a 2-1 match.
- The Hawks carried their momentum into the fourth set, opening with a 7-2 lead with Frano tallying a pair of kills and Macalaguim posting her third kill for Saint Anselm. A 6-1 run highlighted by an ace and a kill from Brown doubled the Hawks advantage to 16-8. A late attacking push from the Falcons tied the set at 23-23, but Saint Anselm would force the game into a fifth set after taking set four by a final score of 25-23.
- Bentley took control early in the fifth set after back-to-back aces from Ingrid Murphy made it 6-3 Falcons. Wetjen would then record two kills followed by three consecutive kills from Brown to even the score at 8-8. The Falcons would go on to win seven of the final eight points to secure the 15-9 fifth-set win and cement the 3-2 victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Frano led the team with 17 kills in the match along with 11 digs and an assist. Brown was the only other Hawk in double-digits with 12 kills, nine digs, three aces, and an assist.
- On the defensive side, fifth-year Caroline Belmontez (San Diego, Calif.) produced 24 digs, her sixth 20-plus dig game of the season. Wetjen and Adams led the Hawks with four total blocks apiece.
- Macalaguim dished out 22 assists while Pila added another 10 passes on the night for Saint Anselm.
- This marked the fifth time these two programs faced each other in the NE10 postseason dating back to the 1993 season. The Falcons are now 4-1 against the Hawks in postseason action.
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