PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Saint Joseph's College (21-4, 6-2 GNAC) split a pair of Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) matches on Saturday. The Monks posted a 3-0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-20) win over Emmanuel College (6-14, 4-2 GNAC) in the opener and fell by the same score (20-25, 18-25, 21-25) to Johnson & Wales University (14-5, 6-0 GNAC) in the closing contest.
THE LEAD
Saint Joseph's opened the day with an impressive overall performance, posting a .233 attack percentage in a shutout victory over Emmanuel. Junior outside hitter Victoria Huntley (Ellsworth, Maine) paced the Royal Blue with 14 kills and 17 digs while senior middle blocker Felicia Wachowiak (Milton, N.H.) produced 13 kills on 23 attempts for a spectacular .522 kill rate.
In the nightcap, Johnson & Wales held the lead for all but the early portion of the third set as the Monks were outshined by a 45-27 mark in kills and fell victim to 10 JWU service aces in the setback. Wachowiak led the offense with 11 kills in the losing effort.
NOTABLE – vs. Emmanuel
- Junior setter Mariah Hebert (Biddeford, Maine) broke the Monks' three-set assists record with 37 dimes, surpassing the former mark (36) set by Kiah Begley '13 against Emmanuel exactly three years ago today
- Junior outside hitter Shadai Gosselin (Somersworth, Maine) contributed six kills and 14 digs
- Senior middle blocker Alli Hollander (Thermal, Calif.) chimed in with six kills
- Freshman libero Jennelle Thompson (Farmington, N.H.) added 17 digs
- Senior defensive specialist Sam Wright (Westport, Mass.) delivered three service aces
NOTABLE – vs. Johnson & Wales
- Huntley totaled eight kills and eight digs
- Gosselin added 12 digs and a pair of kills
- Hebert contributed 21 assists and eight digs
- Senior defensive specialist Abbie McPhee (Epping, N.H.) chipped in with eight digs
- Thompson boasted 14 digs
- Hollander added four kills and a trio of block assists
TEAM STATS – vs. Emmanuel
The Monks held advantages in kills (43-33), assists (40-31), aces (8-6) and digs (70-58) in the 3-0 victory over the Saints.
TEAM STATS – vs. Johnson & Wales
JWU held advantages in kills (45-27), assists (42-25) and service aces (10-0) while the Monks owned a 59-54 edge in digs and a 5-1 lead in blocks on the afternoon. The Wildcats posted a .208 attack rate with 18 errors in 130 attempts while the Monks recorded a .177 mark with 10 miscues in 96 bids.
The Wildcats' kill total is the most allowed by the Monks in a three-set match this fall and this afternoon's match counts as the first of the season in which SJC failed to register at least one service ace.
Also, the Monks' .177 attack percentage is the highest the team has posted in a loss this season.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING – vs. Emmanuel
Today's victory over the Saints was just the Monks' third since the start of the 1989 campaign and first since the 2012 campaign. St. Joe's is now 3-8 all-time versus Emmanuel College.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING – vs. Johnson Wales
With the loss, Saint Joseph's falls to 1-11 all-time versus Johnson & Wales University, a team that has now defeated the Monks in five-consecutive meetings dating back to the 2012 campaign.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's has just six regular-season matches remaining, starting with a home event versus Bates College on Thursday at 7:00 PM.
#GOMONKS
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
