Barry, Adams lead Seahawks to 3-2 win over UNE in their home opener

NEWPORT, R.I. - Junior tri-captain Julianne Barry (Randolph, Mass.) tallied a match-high 13 kills and freshman Clare Adams (New Concord, Ohio) had 11 as the Salve Regina University volleyball team upended the University of New England 3-2 in The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) action Wednesday night at Rodgers Recreation Center.

Playing their first home match of the season after 12 road contests, the Seahawks (4-9, 2-1 TCCC) grabbed an early lead in the match with a 25-21 win in the opening game. The Nor'easters (8-6, 2-2 TCCC) rallied back with a 25-17 win in game two before the Seahawks jumped in front again by virtue of a 25-23 win in game three. UNE forced a fifth and decisive set by winning game four, 25-17, but were unable to complete the comeback and dropped the fifth set, 15-11.

The Seahawks tallied 18 total blocks on the night (four solo), led by Barry with five and freshman Jill Diffendaffer (Centennial, Colo.) with four. Sophomore and 2009 TCCC Honorable Mention selection Megan Clancy (Chelmsford, Mass.) led Salve Regina with 14 digs while junior Jessica Meyer (Seymour, Conn.) handed out a team-high 17 assists.

Sophomore Paige Curran (Chelmsford, Mass.) led the Nor'easters with 11 kills but also notched seven errors to finish with a .154 hitting percentage. Senior Kristen Edwards (Laconia, N.H.) and freshman Angie Brunette (North Andover, Mass.) registered 10 points each for the visitors while freshman Maria Kuehl (Middleton, N.H.) dished out a match-high 40 assists.

"We started the week with a new attitude, a 'Refuse to Lose' attitude," said first-year Salve Regina head coach Lindsay Marshall. "The girls really responded well. This is a quality win against a conference opponent, and I was very happy with the play of everyone on my team tonight."

The match turned with the match tied at one and the Seahawks trailing 13-8 in the third game. Adams (above) was slated to serve for SRU and helped the Seahawks go on a 9-0 run which was sparked by three-consecutive service aces. Salve Regina never lost control of the frame, went up 2-1 in the match and went on to defeat UNE for just the second time in nine all-time meetings.

The Seahawks return to action on Saturday when they play a tri-match at Roger Williams. They face the Hawks at 11 a.m. and Colby-Sawyer at 1 p.m. The Nor'easters play a tri-match at Lasell with Framingham State this Saturday.