For Immediate Release –October 14th, 2006
WELLESLEY VOLLEYBALL
Contact: Tom Wilson
Phone: (781) 283-2004
E-mail: twilson1@wellesley.edu

University of Dubuque Takes Wellesley Invitational

WELLESLEY, Mass. – In the opening match on Saturday, Wellesley College defeated a solid Bridgewater State squad, 3-0.  Wellesley inched out to a 16-13 lead in game one, but the Bears struck back quickly to go up 17-16.  Wellesley then took five of the next six points and held on to win 30-27.  In game two, Wellesley again took the early advantage, edging to a 13-9 lead.  After trading four sideouts, junior outside hitter Heather Mellquist served four consecutive points to give Wellesley a 21-13 lead.  Bridgewater cut the deficit to 27-21, but Wellesley held off the late charge and won 30-25.  Game three belonged entirely to the Blue as they jumped out to a 12-6 and never looked back, taking the final set 30-20.

Bridgewater was led by junior middle hitter Kelsey Collasius, with 12 kills and four blocks.  Senior Kassie Moore tallied 27 assists, while libero Shannon Desmond chipped in 10 digs.  Seniors Laura Ackerman and Sarah Boone led the Blue with 12 and eight kills, respectively, as sophomore Emily Peters distributed 36 assists.  Wellesley’s defense was anchored at the net by junior Tracy Waldman, with seven blocks, and senior Krista Teige, with five.  First-year libero Naomi Iwata chipped in 19 digs, and Sarah Boone added 12.

In the second match of the day, Dubuque outlasted Nazareth in a marathon five-set match, taking its second step toward the tournament championship.  Dubuque took charge early behind the serving and hitting of junior middle blocker Jena Goedken, winning the first two games 30-12 and 30-25.  Nazareth bounced back to take games three and four, with tough serving and solid hitting from Laura Persico and Katelynn Reed.  In the fifth and deciding game, Dubuque jumped out to an 8-4 lead.  The Golden Flyers battled back to tie the game at 8-8, but the Spartans broke away again to take a 10-8 lead, holding on to win 15-10.

Nazareth was led by sophomore outside hitter Laura Persico, with 13 kills and five aces.  Freshman middle hitter Kate Reed added nine kills, and junior Elyse Monje tallied 37 assists.  Natasha Villane and Carra Vanderstyne led the Golden Flyers on defense, with 23 and 21 digs, respectively.  Jena Goedken led Dubuque with a school-record 38 kills.  Katelyn Hermann and Jody Klepinger added 12 kills each.  Goedken and Jayme Kalb led the Spartans in blocking, with five each.  Jessica Browning tallied 69 assists and 24 digs, while Abbie Hillard chipped in 22 digs.

In the next match, sophomore Jessica Duff led the hosts to a 3-1 victory over Nazareth.  Wellesley dominated the first set 30-13, with Duff leading all hitters in the opening game with seven kills on nine attempts. Wellesley took the second set as well, 30-25, to take a 2-0 lead in the match.  Nazareth rallied in the third game, using a strong service attack to take the set 30-28 and narrow Wellesley’s lead to 2-1.  Wellesley came out on fire at the start of the fourth and final game, taking a 12-3 lead.  Nazareth rallied for a five-point streak at the end of the game, but Wellesley held on for a 30-25 win to take the match.

Laura Persico once again led the Golden Flyers with 14 kills.  Elizabeth Tregan and Hillary Adams tallied five blocks each.  Kate Zwickle and Elyse Monje shared setting duties, chipping in 22 and 11 assists, respectively.  Carra Vanderstyne led Nazareth with 19 digs.  Jessica Duff led the Blue with 16 kills, while Sarah Boone added 13.  Sophomore Emily Peters distributed 47 assists.  The Wellesley defense was anchored at the net by Tracy Waldman and Krista Teige, with six blocks each.  Laura Ackerman added five blocks, while Naomi Iwata tallied 17 digs.

In the final match of the day, Dubuque sealed the Wellesley Invitational Title with a 3-0 win over Bridgewater State.  The opening set remained close until a seven-point run gave Dubuque an 18-11 lead.  Bridgewater made a late surge, but Dubuque held on for 30-26 win.  Bridgewater took an early 5-1 lead in game two, but the Spartans fought back to take an 11-10 edge.  Then libero Abbie Hillard served 13 consecutive points, giving the Spartans a 14-point lead as they rolled to 30-14 win.  In game three, Dubuque used four three-point runs to build a 22-12 lead, allowing the Spartans to cruise to a 30-20 victory.

Goedken led all players with 15 kills, while Jody Klepinger added 12.  Goedken and Klepinger also led the Spartans in blocks, with six and four, respectively.  Setter Jessica Browning scored a rare triple-double with 10 kills, 50 assists, and 12 digs.  Abbie Hillard chipped in 12 digs.  Kelsey Collasius led Bridgewater with 12 kills and four blocks.  Kassie Moore tallied 22 assists and two aces.  Shannon Desmond added 11 digs.

Wellesley Volleyball Invitational

Final Standings:
1st -- Dubuque, 3-0
2nd -- Wellesley, 2-1
3rd -- Nazareth, 1-2
4th -- Bridgewater State, 0-3

Day 2 Results

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Last Modified: October 14, 2006