Women's Volleyball Defeated In NEAC Semifinals

MARCY, N.Y. – The Wells College women's volleyball team was defeated by the Bison from Gallaudet University in the semifinal round of the North Eastern Athletic Conference tournament, held on the campus of the SUNY Polytechnic Institute. With the four set loss, Wells concludes its fourth season as a modern-day varsity program with a record of 18-11. 

Gallaudet, whose only regular season loss in conference play was to the Express, rebounded to defeat Wells via scores of 25-19, 25-17, 23-25 and 25-23 in the semifinal round of the playoffs. The Bison will look to win its sixth-straight NEAC title on Sunday, facing-off against the host Wildcats from SUNY Poly at 1 p.m. 

Wells was led by senior Vashti Nettles (Long Beach, Calif.), tallying 13 kills without committing an attacking error on the match. Junior Meredith Kadjeski (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) ranked second on the team, chipping in with 10 kills and six digs for the Express. Sophomore Eliza Schwab (Hartland, N.Y.) assisted 29 of her team's 40 kills while junior Nadine Pershyn (Buffalo, N.Y.) scooped up 15 digs from the back line. 

Sophomore Olyvia Brazier (Stony Brook, N.Y.) had a solid all-around game for Wells, tabulating 12 digs and seven kills. Additionally, Wells combined for 13 total blocks, using three solo blocks and 20 block assists to set a single-match program record. Nettles led all Wells players with six block assists. 

In the first set, Gallaudet opened up a commanding 21-9 lead but a kill from Kadjeski sparked the Express to four-straight points. Trailing 24-13, the Express went on another streak, posting six-straight points to make things interesting in the opening stanza. A service error by the Express, however, lifted the Bison to the early 1-0 lead. 

Wells led by a 14-8 margin in the second set, but with Raelyn Fuechtmann serving for Gallaudet, the Bison posted eight-straight points to capture a lead they would not relinquish. Wells committed only two attacking errors in the second set, but Gallaudet limited the Express to a match-low six kills and a .133 attacking percentage. 

In a thrilling third set, the Express held on to pick up the 25-23 victory to cut the match to 2-1. With her team trailing 23-22, Nettles posted back-to-back kills to propel the Express into the lead. With sophomore Anuhea Leite-Ah Yo (Hilo, Hawaii) serving at set point, an attack from Gallaudet's Darriyan Thomas was blocked by Brazier and Nettles to swing momentum in favor of Wells. 

Wells rallied from a 4-0 margin to make things interesting in the fourth set, battling the Bison to a 22-22 tie down the stretch. An Express service error preceded a kill from Brazier, who was set up by senior Zakarra Butts (Cortland, N.Y.) on the play. With the set tied at 23, however, Gallaudet saw back-to-back kills from Thomas and Tessa Lewis to clinch a 3-1 win for the Bison. 

Thomas led her team with 24 kills on 69 total attacks, posting a double-double with 10 digs on defense. Molly Perkins contributed with 11 kills while TraciAnn Hoglind posted 50 assists in her team's victory. Danielle Morris led her team defensively with 15 digs while Kylene Etkie had five of her team's 11 service aces on the afternoon.