Volleyball Swept in Tri-Match with Rams and Engineers

Riccardi breaks all-time kills' record

Fitchburg, Mass. – The Fitchburg State women's volleyball team fell to the Rams of Framingham State (3-0) and the WPI Engineers (3-0) in tri-match volleyball action this evening at the Parkinson Gymnasium.

The Basics

Match 1: Fitchburg State 0, Framingham State 3 (19-25, 11-25, 14-25)
Match 2: Framingham State 0, WPI 3 (14-25, 17-25, 14-25)
Match 3: Fitchburg State 0, WPI 3 (21-25, 17-25, 6-25)

Records: Fitchburg State (1-17, 0-5 MASCAC) | Framingham State (10-13, 4-1 MASCAC) | WPI (14-5)

How It Happened – Match 1

The Falcons raced out to a 7-1 advantage in game one on a pair of kills from sophomore Emily Gelinas (Westfield, Mass.) and a service ace from Leah Sheehan (Billerica, Mass.). With freshman Hayley Gaskin (North Attleboro, Mass.) at the service helm the Rams tied the match at 12-all and forged ahead 14-12 on a Falcons defensive miscue.  The Green and Gold battled back to knot the game 16-16 with a kill from newcomer Sariah Dyer (Raynham, Mass.), but a kill from freshman Valerie Sullivan (Buffalo, NY) capped a 25-19 win for the visitors.

In game two the Rams dashed to a 12-2 lead and the Falcons never threatened. Sheehan's ace cut the margin to 16-7 and Framingham State closed the match with a kill from Brandee Thomas (North Kingstown, RI) for the 25-11 win.

Fitchburg State opened the third stanza with a pair of kills from freshman Samantha Mirra (Burlington, Mass.) and Gelinas to trail 4-3. The Rams would go on an 8-4 run finished with a kill from Jamiyae Mattress (Mauldin, SC) to extend the lead to 16-7. The Falcons countered with a pair of points on Gelinas' server but it wasn't enough as Framingham closed out the match with a 25-14 final.

Inside the Numbers

• Senior Lauren Riccardi (Tewksbury, Mass.) broke the program record for all-time kills (364) in game three.
• Junior Meredith Taylor (Reading, Mass.) had a team-high 12 assists, while Gelinas chipped in with 8 helpers. Dyer had 7 kills and a block for the Falcons.
• Gaskin had a game-high 28 assists for Framingham, while Hailey Sanders (Franklin, Mass.) and Sullivan each had 7 kills.

 How It Happened – Match 2

WPI swept the Framingham State Rams 3-0 (14-25, 17-25, 14-25) in match number two in non-conference volleyball action at Parkinson Gymnasium

• Junior Catherine Reynolds (Concord, NH) led all players with 29 assists for the Engineers, while Amanda Wetmore (Hudson, NH) added 15 kills, 2 assists, 2 blocks and an ace.
• Sophomore Paige Garland (Nashua, NH) contributed 8 kills and 4 aces in the win.
• The Rams were led by Brandee Thomas' 10 kills, 2 assists and one block. Haley Gaskin added a team-high 15 assists.

 How It Happened – Match 3

Meredith Taylor opened up the match serving the Falcons to a 4-0 lead. The Falcons would extend the advantage to 10-7 with a kill from Sariah Dyer and hold a 16-9 score after a pair of kills from Leah Sheehan.  However WPI would counter with a 9-0 run capped by a service ace from senior Suela Miloshi (Needham, Mass.) to tie the game at 18-18 and close out the match on the service of junior Maddie Sanborn (Londonderry, NH).

The Visitors sprinted out to a 10-4 lead following a kill from Sanborn. The Falcons rallied to cut the deficit to 16-8 with a kill from Sheehan. Trailing 23-13 the Falcons collected a block from Sheehan and a kill from Mirra forcing a WPI timeout. The Crimson finished out the set on a kill from Sanborn.

In the final set WPI dominated throughout. Leading 5-0 the Falcons added a pair of points with a kill from Sheehan and a block from Lauren Riccardi. Sariah Dyer added a block to make the score 10-6 but the Engineers would reel off 15 straight points to take the match. Miloshi had three aces in the run.

Inside the Numbers

• Sheehan had a team-high 6 kills, while Meredith Taylor had 7 helpers
• Lauren Riccardi added 3 kills and 2 blocks for the Falcons
• WPI was led by Miloshi who had 7 kills, 10 service aces and one assist
• Freshman Emilia Krum (Saratoga Springs, NY) had a game-high 14 assists

Up Next

Falcons are back in action on Tuesday (10/20) when they travel to Mass. Maritime for a MASCAC Conference match-up starting at 7PM.