Lasers Sweep the Pride

Newton, Mass.-Lasell College won and swept their first home volleyball match of the season tonight, 3-0, against neighboring Regis College.  The Lasers are now standing at an 8-20 slate overall, while the Pride hold a 7-21 record.

Lasell went ahead 3-0 on the opening possession of the game, including a service ace by Liz Nichols (Southington, Conn.) to start the game.  The Pride retaliated to take their first lead of the contest at 4-3 before Danielle Drapeau (Biddeford, ME) attacked from the outside to even the score.  After trading side out's for the next few points, Nichols had two big kills for Lasell to give them control of the board once again.  Lasell held onto that lead for the rest of the first set, winning 25-21.

Lasell went up 4-0 in the second game by taking advantage of Pride errors.  After Regis tied things up at 5-all, Lasell went on a six point run to produce a significant 11-5 edge.  Regis brought things back within two points at 14-12 off two downed balls by Lauren Ross (Dracut, Mass.), but Lasell responded with a couple of aces by Meghan Crozier (Ballston Spa, NY) to keep distance between them.

Regis inched their way back in again later in the set, closing in on a one-point deficit at 20-19.  However, Eileen Barrett (Ludlow, Mass.) set down line shot to send Lasell on a six-point run which ended the set 25-19 in favor of the Lasers.

Regis took their first lead since the starting set with a 4-3 advantage early on in the third game.  Lasell did not allow that to last long though as they pulled back into the lead and kept hold for the remainder of the contest.  With a final score of 25-19, Lasell swept the Pride 3-0 in the match.

Crozier dictated a strong Lasell offense utilizing her hitters well to create prime opportunities. The sophomore setter finished the match with 24 assists.  Senior, libero Amanda Major (Southbury, Conn.) also had a nice showing for Lasell with 14 digs in defense.  Drapeau and Crozier each tallied ten digs in the back court also. 

Lasell's main offensive threat was Drapeau in the middle, good for 13 kills on the night and a .265 attack percentage, while her opposite, Nichols, added eight more attacks for the Lasers. 

Caitlin Luquot (Walnut Creek, CA) did a fine job as the Pride's primary setter, earning 19 assists in the contest.  Ross led the Pride with nine kills, but outside hitter Domingas Gomes (Brockton, Mass.) was a close second on the team with seven.  Amanda Hoyt (Madison, NH) produced the game-best 16 digs in the contest.

Lasell plays in a GNAC tri-match on Saturday, October 24^th at Simmons College with St. Joseph's College of Connecticut.  Lasell's final regular season game will be held at home on Saturday, October 31^st at 10:00 a.m. against GNAC defending champions Rivier College.