NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College volleyball team picked up a 3-1 victory over Worcester Polytechnic Institute on Tuesday night in non-conference action at Luce Field House.
The Camels dropped the opening set but recovered quickly, bouncing back to win by set scores of 18-25, 26-24, 25-13 and 25-16.
Rae Wartelle (Tacoma, Wash.) led all players with 15 kills and five blocks while
Tilde Keatley (Pasadena, Calif.) and
Keira Deeney (Norwell, Mass.) chipped in 13 and 12 kills, respectively.
WPI grabbed a 7-1 advantage out of the gate and never trailed in the first set. The Engineers recorded five service aces in the stanza—including three from Bridget Spees—and tallied 11 kills on 33 swings.
In the second set, Conn trailed 23-21 following a service ace from Spees, but clawed back behind a 5-1 spurt to even up the match. All five points came via a kill—two from Deeney and one apiece for Keatley,
Vibha Sheth (Austin, Texas) and
Emilie Ferdinand (Stoneham, Mass.).
The Camels came alive in the pivotal third set, ripping off an 11-1 run that propelled them to a 19-8 advantage. The hosts led by as many as 14 in the frame as Keatley supplied five kills and Sheth, Wartelle and Deeney added three each.
Down 6-3 early in the fourth, Conn responded with a 6-1 run and never trailed again. The Camels finished with 16 kills in the final set—six of which came from Ferdinand—and cemented the win by capturing eight of the final 10 points.
Conn's 58 kills were three shy of its season high, and its hitting percentage of .264 was the highest of the season at home.
Aubrie Letourneau (Mattapoisett, Mass.) fueled the attack with a season-high 35 assists and also added seven digs.
Caroline Festersen (Omaha, Neb.) posted a match-high 21 digs while
Natalie Huang (Waban, Mass.) had four aces.
WPI, which won a match against Mitchell College earlier in the day, dropped to 9-9 overall. Spees paced the Engineers with nine kills on the night.
Conn (6-9 overall) will next host Williams College on Saturday, October 17 at 2:00 p.m.
