Beverley, Mass.--
Coming off of a strong first day at the Endicott Invitational, varsity volleyball knew that things were not going to get any easier on day two, as they faced off against Schreiner (TX), an out of region opponent, and the hosts, a perennial powerhouse in the Commonwealth Coast Conference.
First going up against Schreiner, a team that the Ephs knew little about prior to the weekend, Williams hoped to keep the momentum rolling from their emotional comeback the previous evening against Plymouth State. Offensively the Ephs picked up right where they left off, slamming home 14 kills against only one error in the first set. This led to a stellar hitting percentage of .419. First year Claire Miller had six kills in the first set, out of her team leading 12 kills in the match. Behind their hot offense Williams rolled to a 25-17 set victory.
In the second set the Eph offense dropped off a little bit, with only 8 kills, but the defense would pick up the slack. Senior co-captain Aly McKinnon led the way with 13 digs, one of four Williams players with at least 5 digs. Junior Lauren Agoubi and first year Mandy Schott had 8 digs apiece, while Miller chipped in an additional 7. The Ephs would close out the second set 25-20. In the third set the Eph offense rebounded with a vengeance, posting 9 kills versus zero errors. All told the team would have a hitting percentage of .283, no easy feat against as talented a team as Schreiner. In the end, though, Williams closed out the third set 25-20 to win the match.
In the second match of the day the Ephs faced off against the host Gulls of Endicott College. The Ephs jumped out to a quick lead in the first set, leading 7-1. The Eph offense once again paced the charge, while tough serving helped get their opponents out of rhythm and stymied their offense. Lauren Agoubi and Claire Miller both had 2 aces in the match, as Williams served up a season high 8 aces. Miller would once again lead the team in kills, with 19 while hitting .372. Sophomore Emily Baratta was close behind with 14 kills of her own, giving her a combined 21 for the day. First year Emily O'Day had 10 kills against Endicott versus only 3 errors for a hitting percentage of .241. Williams would win the set 25-13
The Gulls rebounded in set two, and steadily began to push back against the Ephs. The never-say-die attitude on defense that was a hallmark of all four matches that the Ephs played this weekend allowed them to pull out the set victory 25-20. McKinnon would turn in her best defensive performance of the weekend against Endicott, with 22 digs. Miller had 16 digs, while first year Holly Harper was third on the team with 10. First year Raea Rasmussen was the team leader in blocks, with 4, while Baratta, Schott, and junior co-captain Haley Eagon all had 2 apiece. After dropping a hard fought set 3 19-25, the Ephs roared back to close out the fourth set 25-20.
All in all the Ephs have a lot to be proud of about the way they conducted themselves this weekend against some very good teams. "Overall I'm very pleased with our entire team's effort," said head coach Christi Kelsey. "We were able to put together 4 consistent matches and our entire team was able to contribute. It's a good starting point, but we know we need to get better every week and we're looking forward to doing that together." Noted junior co-captain Haley Eagon "I'm proud of how our team performed against some solid competition. I'm looking forward to next weekend when we open up our conference schedule."
Next weekend the Ephs will travel to Connecticut College for their first NESCAC weekend of the year against the host Camels and archrival Tufts.
