Volleyball Posts 3-1 Win Over Curry

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – The Bridgewater State University women's volleyball team posted a 3-1 (25-19, 25-23, 22-25, 25-15) victory over visiting Curry College on Thursday evening at the Tinsley Center.

The Bears improve to 4-9 on the season with their third straight win, while the Colonels slip to 4-6.

Junior setter Charleyne Panner (Gilford, N.H.) paced the victorious Bears with 43 assists, seven kills, a .583 hitting percentage and ten digs. Senior middle hitter Julie Hutchins (Bellingham, Mass.) added nine kills, a .381 hitting percentage and a solo block, while junior outside hitter Hannah Maymon (Narragansett, R.I.) checked in with 12 kills, ten digs and three aces.

Bridgewater State also received 11 kills, a pair of aces and three blocks (one solo) from junior middle hitter Sydney Bennett (North Attleboro, Mass.), as well as eight kills from senior outside hitter Clara Goncalves (Dennis, Mass.).

Sophomore middle blocker Nicole Rice (Woburn, Mass.) led the way for Curry with nine kills and three solo blocks, while junior outside hitter Nicole Grambley (North Attleboro, Mass.) tallied eight kills and an ace. Junior setter Makayla Hughes (Franklin, N.H.) added 11 assists, four kills and two aces and freshman outside hitter Grace Stafford (West Yarmouth, Mass.) notched seven kills and six digs.

In the opener, Bennett and Panner notched three kills apiece to lead the Bears to the 25-19 win. Panner also added eight assists, while Maymon checked in with a pair of kills and an ace. Stafford paced the Colonels with three kills and an assisted block.

Trailing 17-15 in the second set, the Bears reeled off four straight points on kills by Goncalves and Maymon, a Bennett ace and a Colonel attacking error. A pair of Hutchins' kills sandwiched around two BSU serving errors followed by a Curry serving error made the score 22-19 in favor of the Bears. A kill by Hughes was answered by back-to-back kills by Hutchins and Maymon to put the Bears at set point, 24-20. The Colonels rallied for three straight points on two BSU errors and a Grambley ace, but Panner ended the run with a kill to give the Bears the 25-23 win and a 2-0 lead in the match.

Maymon registered four kills in the second set, while Panner tallied two kills and nine assists. Hutchins recorded three kills late in the set to help secure the win.

Curry led throughout the entire third set and held a late 24-19 lead. The Bears took advantage of a Curry receiving error and responded with an ace by Bennett and a Hutchins' solo block to close the gap to 24-22. Sophomore outside hitter Elaina Morrison (Kingston, Mass.) ended any hopes of a BSU sweep with a huge kill to give the Colonels the 25-22 win. Rice had four kills and a pair of aces to lead the Colonels in the third set.

Bridgewater scored eight straight points, with seven coming on the serve of freshman defensive specialist Alyssa Kelley (Mansfield, Mass.), to take a commanding 16-9 lead in the fourth set. The Colonels would get no closer than six points the rest of the way as the Bears secured the match with a 25-15 victory.

Bridgewater State posted a .225 hitting percentage for the match. The Bears finished with seven aces but also with 12 serving errors.

Curry struggled on the attack as the Colonels recorded a .121 hitting percentage.

The Bears travel to Salem State University on Saturday for a tri-match featuring the host Vikings and Norwich University. The Colonels host Eastern Nazarene College on Saturday at noon.