(Image taken from @umassdvolleyball/Instagram)
Volunteer Writer: Nick Stabila
Email: nstabila@umassd.edu
UMass Dartmouth entered the Little East Conference (LEC) Tournament as the No.3 seed with high hopes but ultimately was upset by No. 6 seed UMass Boston at the Tripp Athletic Center.
UMass Boston defeated UMass Dartmouth 3-2 (16-25, 25-21, 25-14, 18-25, 15-7).
UMass Boston used their championship experience to pull off the upset. After being swept by the Corsairs 3-0 on October 12th, the Beacons bounced back here in the tournament.
The Corsairs jumped out to a quick start, as they took a 1-0 match, winning the first set 25-16.
The Beacons, who won the LEC last season, showed their championship resiliency. The Beacons went out to win the next two sets, 25-21 and 25-14.
The Corsairs were able to respond in the fourth set. After withstanding a rally from the Beacons, the Corsairs took the set 25-18 and forced the tiebreaker.
The Beacons jumped out to a quick lead in the tiebreaker. The Corsairs were able to pull within two points, but the Beacons ultimately pulled away and won the final set 15-7.
The Beacons were led by junior Ally Dean, who had a match-high 20 digs.
Senior Amelia Devlin led the match with 29 assists. Devlin also had three aces and five kills.
Senior McKayla Geraghty had a match-high 13 kills.
UMass Boston will go to No. 2 seed Keene State for the semifinal match.
The Corsairs were led by sophomore Kate Wade, who had a team-high 19 digs. Wade also contributed with nine kills.
Junior Devon Laing also had nine kills. Laing contributed with 13 digs as well.
Freshman standout Emily Pogorelec had 14 digs for the Corsairs.
Freshman Sabrina Bardone had a match-leading four aces. Bardone also led the team with 20 assists.
Junior Gabriella Monico ended the match with seven kills.
Junior Marley Alexander and freshman Emma Rousseau both had two aces. Rousseau had 15 assists as well.
UMass Dartmouth finished the season 19-8 overall and 6-3 in the LEC. Although the season didn’t end the way they wanted it to, this was still a very successful season for the Corsairs. It was the first time in over 20 years the Corsairs were able to clinch a home game in the LEC tournament.
UMass Dartmouth will look forward to next season as they are expected to have nearly their entire roster back. It was a tough loss, but the Corsairs will look to come back hungrier than ever in the 2023 season.