Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Bristol, RI – Williams College (7-0) competed in a Saturday doubleheader against Clark University (8-2) and Roger Williams University (0-6).
To open the day, Williams took on Clark University and earned the sweep.
The third set opened with Williams jumping to an early 6-2 lead behind strong serving from junior
Christina Conforti and a kill and solo block from first-year
Tazmin Appiah. Clark narrowed the Ephs lead to 1 point with strong serving from first-year Emily Newman and a double block from sophomore Sheyenne Williams and senior Margarita Perez-Maza. However, Williams bounced back with a double block from sophomores
Marit Hoyem and
Lauren Kauppila. This was the energy boost the Ephs needed as they cruised to a 25-19 victory, highlighted by 2 kills from
Christina Conforti down the stretch.
In the first set, Clark opened with a 4-0 run behind first-year Yvanna Torres. However, Williams was undeterred and began to chip away at the early Clark lead. A kill from junior
Kiley Wallace tied the set at 12-12 and sparked a Williams 4-0 run, pushing the lead to 15-12. The Ephs played a well-rounded set and senior
Alicia Blanco's serves and 3 kills from
Marit Hoyem helped propel Williams to a 25-16 victory.
For the second set, play was back and forth until Williams utilized a Clark error to go on a 8-0 run. Senior
Lydia Kurtz instigated this run, and her two service aces established the tone for the duration of the set. This run held the Clark attack off and did not allow them to get closer than 4 points. Clark's junior Claudia Rivera fired two kills late in the set to attempt a Clark rally, but Williams gathered themselves, and their mental toughness pushed the Ephs to a 25-17 win.
Clark leaders were: sophomores Victoria Pastor and Sofia Scherrer del Llano with 6 kills each, Yvanna Torres with 14 assists, and Yvanna Torres with 9 digs. Williams leaders were:
Marit Hoyem and
Kiley Wallace with 13 kills each,
Lauren Kauppila with 40 assists, and
Christina Conforti with 12 digs.
Williams swept Roger Williams University for the last matchup of the day and improved to 2-0 on the day.
In the third set, Roger Williams erupted for a quick start, but Williams took a timeout to reset. This proved to be what Williams needed, and
Anna Tosolini powered a kill followed by a
Lauren Kauppila service ace to give the Ephs the 14-11 lead. Roger Williams senior setter Kate Porter utilized different looks to keep the Williams defense on their toes, but this was to no avail. Williams reigned victorious, 25-19.
The first set saw eleven ties with excellent play from both teams. To break a 13-13 tie, Williams
Kiley Wallace fired a kill that fired the Ephs up. From here, Williams never surrendered the lead and cruised for the remainder of the set, behind the intelligent setting from
Lauren Kauppila and a kill from
Alicia Blanco. Roger Williams senior Katherine Pickard slammed two kills late in the set to attempt a comeback, but Williams held the late advance off and won 25-21.
In the second set, Williams built off their first set energy to jump out to an early 10-4 lead and 2 kills from junior
Anna Tosolini and 3 kills from
Marit Hoyem. However, Roger Williams was determined to narrow the lead and tied the set up at 14-14 with the help of 2 kills from junior Kristen Dansereau. Play proceeded back and forth with strong play from Roger Williams' Kristen Kansereau and senior Allie Welch. Two Roger Williams errors broke a tie and gave Williams the 18-16 lead. The Ephs never looked back, and decisive kills from
Christina Conforti and a double block by
Kiley Wallace and
Anna Tosolini secured the Williams 25-19 victory.
Roger Williams leaders were: Katherine Pickard with 12 kills, Kate Porter with 30 assists, and senior Kate Grabowski with 8 digs. Williams leaders were: sophomore
Celia Adams and
Christina Conforti with 10 kills each,
Lauren Kauppila with 32 assists, and
Christina Conforti with 9 digs.
Head coach
Christi Kelsey described Saturday's play, "I cannot be more proud of our team's performances in both matches today! We asked our crew to make a few adjustments from our game last night against Trinity, and we executed those incredibly well from start to finish today. Overall, we had tremendous energy, poise, and consistency from our entire team. It's great to get 2 more non-conference wins, but we look forward to getting back to work on Monday."
The Ephs return to NESCAC play at home on Friday, September 24
th. Williams will take on Hamilton College at 7 PM EST.
