Seahawks open season with losses to ECSU, Babson

WILLIMANTIC, Conn. - Sophomore middle blocker Katie Wilson (Pittsburg, Calif.) recorded 10 blocks and attacked at .388 with a team-high 23 kills to pace the Eastern Connecticut State University women's volleyball team to two victories Saturday at Francis E. Geissler Gymasnium.

Eastern (2-1) posted 25-17, 25-12, 21-25, 25-15 triumphs over Salve Regina University (0-2) and 25-18, 25-17, 25-22 wins over Babson College (1-2) as first-year head coach Fran Vandermeer was credited with her first coaching victories at Eastern. Vandermeer had won 318 matches in 13 years at Trinity College and Williams College.

Babson gained a split on the day with a 25-22, 25-15, 25-15 win over Salve Regina.

A first-year transfer from Southern Connecticut State University, Wilson had double-digit kills in each match. Against Salve Regina, she had 11 kills and a .276 attack percentage and six blocks; against Babson, she had 12 kills, a .550 attack percentage and four blocks.

For Eastern on the afternoon, junior outside hitter Samantha Slonski (Griswold) followed Wilson with 20 kills and a .310 attack percentage and contributed 22 digs, five service aces and two blocks; Senior outside hitter Rachael Joy (Huntington Station, N.Y.) was also in double figures on the day with 11 kills while totaling 19 digs and three aces; junior libero Taylor Abelli (Cheshire) topped the Warriors with 29 digs and handled 37 serve receptions with just one error; and first-year junior setter Ashley Markley (Preston) collected 51 assists and chipped in 12 digs.

As a team, the Warriors were guilty of only three reception errors against Salve Regina. After the Seahawks cut Eastern's lead in half with the third-set victory, Eastern broke from a tie by scoring seven straight points to move out to a 19-12 lead on the way to Vandermeer's first triumph at Eastern.

After taking the first two sets against Babson, the Warriors completed the sweep with a tight win in the final set. Babson scored twice in a row to pull even at 22-22 before Eastern closed out the triumph with the final three points.

In Babson's split, junior outside hitter Meg Flaherty (Hollis, N.H.) totaled 25 kills and junior right-side Alexa Untermann (Honolulu, Hawaii) 10 kills, senior outside Katy Alea (Southborough, Mass.) 17 digs and sophomore setter Kathleen Lynch (Quincy, Mass.) 51 assists. In the sweep of Salve Regina, Flaherty attacked at .484 and had team-highs of 16 kills and 11 digs, Untermann seven kills, and Lynch 30 assists.

For Salve Regina, freshman outside hitter Clare Adams (New Concord, Ohio) totaled a team-high 19 kills in two losses, sophomore libero Kathleen Sweeney (Milford, Conn.) 23 digs and senior setter Lisa Zabel (Madison, Conn.) 38 assists. Adams had 13 kills and 10 digs and Sweeney 10 digs in the four-set loss to Eastern. Freshmen Jill Diffendaffer (Centennial, Colo.), Jackie Cinquemani (East Islip, N.Y.) junior Julianne Barry (Randolph, Mass.) and Zabel combined for 29 blocks on the day. Against Eastern, Diffendaffer recorded five assists and four solos and Cinquemani five assists and a solo. Against Babson, Barry had five solos and three assists and Zabel four assists and two solos.

Eastern remained unbeaten in the all-time series with Salve Regina (8-0) and Babson (7-0).

Courtesy of Eastern Connecticut State sports information