NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Norwich University Volleyball team split a pair of matches at Andrews Hall on Saturday, upending the Wentworth Institute of Technology Leopards, 3-1, following a 3-1 setback to the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. With the Saturday split, the Cadets improve to 4-2 on the year. The third of the tri-match featured MCLA vs. WIT, resulting in a Wentworth victory, 3-0.
Norwich Volleyball vs. Wentworth
Norwich controlled the pace of Saturday's nightcap, securing a dominant third set victory following a 1-1 deadlock and holding off Wentworth in the fourth to score a 3-1 victory (25-14, 18-25, 25-14, 25-21). Senior Ana Lopez (Laredo, Texas) was one of three Cadets to rack up double-digit kills, leading the team with 12 kills on the day.
Junior Sam Lebruska (Lynnfield, Mass) and junior Leah Mathewson (North Chelmsford, Mass.) racked up 10 kills apiece, with Mathewson converting an impressive .467 hitting percentage to go along with two assists, an ace and two solo blocks.
As a team, Norwich hit .322, shining during a first set that saw the Cadets swing at a .700 hitting percentage and a third set that finished with Norwich hitting .474 percent. Junior Laura Farnum (North Andover, Mass.) and senior Maggie McNeil (Gilford, N.H.) converted two aces apiece while senior Sarah Farnum (North Andover, Mass.) recorded a team-high seven digs alongside a 32-assist outing.
A 9-4 run brought the Cadets storming back from an early deficit and spotted Norwich a 13-8 advantage. Wentworth drew to within three points, but Norwich put away the first set with a six-point run to take a 20-10 lead, wrapping up the set, 25-14, to take a 1-0 lead in the match. Wentworth struck back with a strong second set, winning 25-18 behind 13 kills.
Norwich jumped out to a 4-0 lead in set three, keeping the Leopards at bay while using several two-to-three point runs to take a 16-9 lead. Back-to-back points for Wentworth looked promising for the Leopards to reestablish momentum, but the Cadets quickly took that away with a six-point run that put the set out of reach at 22-11.
The Cadets broke a 19-19 tie and took a three-point lead off of a kill and ace by Addison Schroeder (Apple Valley, Calif.) alongside a Leopard attack error. A kill from Sarah Farnum passed from Lauren Farnum started a match ending, three-point run for the Cadets.
Norwich Volleyball vs Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
A feverish comeback fell just short of forcing a decisive fifth set as Norwich dropped a 3-1 decision (25-20, 25-23, 21-25, 26-24) to MCLA on Saturday at Andrews Hall. Ana Lopez led the charge for the Cadets with 18 attacks on the afternoon, hitting at a .484 clip. Addison Schroeder tacked on 10 kills, junior Sam Lebruska and sophomore Abby Kanaga scored five kills apiece, and junior Leah Mathewson recorded three kills in the morning.
Junior defensive specialist Laura Farnum led the team with nine digs and tacked on four aces while Mathewson blocked two shots. Senior setter Sarah Farnum picked up a team-high 19 assists, adding on two kills and two digs.
In the first set MCLA built a four-point advantage at 12-8. Norwich fought back and closed the gap to three with a 6-1 run late in the set drawing the set to 22-19, but MCLA was able to secure a 25-20 win to take the early advantage. In the second set, Norwich opened a 9-6 lead, but a comeback by the Trailblazers predicated a back-and-forth set battle that led to a 22-22 deadlock. MCLA won the set and took a 2-0 lead, 25-22 after holding serve and scoring back-to-back kills to prevent an extension of the set.
Norwich picked up a set point in the third, breaking a 19-19 tie and taking control with a four-point run to go up, 24-20. Sarah Farnum fed Lopez for a set-ending kill. Lopez converted three straight kills with the Cadets trailing MCLA, 8-5 to tie the fourth set. MCLA began to turn the tide and used a 7-3 run late in the set to take a 22-16 lead.
The Cadets began their comeback by following up a Trailblazer attack error with a kill from Kanaga and ace from senior Maggie McNeil. MCLA blocked a Cadet attack to earn serve back and move to within two points of the win, but a service error gave the ball back to Norwich. The Cadets tied the match at 23-23 after an attack error, kill by Sarah Farnum and ace by Laura Farnum. The two teams traded points to knot the set at 24-24, but MCLA closed out the match with back-to-back points to end the fourth.
Up Next
Norwich will return to the court on Wednesday, Sept. 14, when the Cadets travel to Plymouth, New Hampshire to battle Plymouth State. The Cadets will return home to Andrews Hall on Friday, Sept. 16 to host Curry College as part of Homecoming Weekend. First serve on Friday is set for 5 p.m.
