Women’s Volleyball Edged at New England College, 3-2

HENNIKER, N.H.- The Eastern Nazarene College women's volleyball team endured a 3-2 setback at New England College Saturday afternoon in the first conference match of the fall.

The Lions slip to 10-9 on the year and 0-1 in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) with the outcome. The Pilgrims improve to 13-4 overall and 1-0 in league play with the win.

Eliana Baran (Beaumont, Calif.) and Emma Graves (Berkshire, N.Y.) each notched a team-high 18 kills. Baran also added four digs while Graves chipped in with four total blocks. Ruth Aguilar (Tegucigalpa, Honduras) nearly posted a triple-double as she finished with 22 assists, 14 digs, and nine kills to go with three blocks. Telma Zelaya (Tegucigalpa, Honduras) collected a team-best 26 digs, 21 assists, six aces, and four kills.

The home team eked out a narrow 25-23 decision in the first set to grab a 1-0 lead in the contest.

The visitors battled back to capture the second set 25-14 to level the match at 1-1.

Eastern Nazarene triumphed 26-24 in the third frame to seize a 2-1 edge.

New England College responded with a 28-26 victory in the fourth to force a winner-take-all fifth frame.

The Pilgrims prevailed 15-10 in the fifth set to secure their first conference win of the year.

Amber Thi paced the hosts with a match-high 20 kills to go with 21 digs. Shirita Wimberly and Tatiana Sampson both contributed 12 kills.

Looking ahead, Eastern Nazarene returns home to face Lasell October 14.