BOSTON, Mass. – Sophomore Tori McIntyre (San Diego, Calif.) paved the way for the Endicott College women's volleyball team as she recorded 14 kills and hit .462, as the Gulls defeated Wentworth Institute of Technology in Commonwealth Coast Conference play at Tansey Gymnasium on Tuesday night.
Endicott improves to 10-8 overall (2-1 CCC), while Wentworth falls to 9-9 (2-2 CCC) on the season. The Gulls remain undefeated against the Leopards in their series history, improving to 18-0.
The Gulls opened the first set with five straight points to take the early lead, but sophomore Jordan Young (Derry, N.H.) ended the streak with a kill to put Wentworth on the board. Endicott kept its lead between three to five points early on, but the Leopards came within two points thanks to an ace from sophomore Amanda Hunton (Monroe, N.Y.) to bring the score to 11-9. Endicott would retain the lead throughout, ending the set with a kill from McIntyre and a Wentworth attack error to finish the first 25-17.
Endicott opened the second set with four straight points, including back-to-back service aces from defensive specialist Cydney Pierce (Carpenteria, Calif.). Freshman Kayla Gendreau (Hudson, N.H.) was able to put the Leopards on the board with a block to make the score 4-1. The Gulls responded with a 12-3 run to put the score at 16-4. Endicott closed the set with a block from sophomore Hayley Knapp (Valencia, Calif.) and junior Lexi Watts (San Diego, Calif.) to win 25-14.
Set number three was opened again by a point streak by the Gulls, this time with three straight. Endicott would eventually score five unanswered points in the set to make the score 19-8 and ended the set on a kill from Knapp to win 25-14.
In addition to McIntyre's 14 kills, she had a pair of blocks while Watts added nine kills and five blocks. Pierce served three aces, Knapp had three blocks, junior Alleigh VandeMerkt (Riverside, Ill.) had 37 assists, and sophomore Erika Trudon (Coventry, Conn.) had 16 digs.
Sophomore Stephanie Nihan (Dracut, Mass.) had eight kills for the Leopards while Young added five and had four blocks. Senior Shannon Ponce (San Jose, Calif.) had 20 assists and three blocks, sophomore Amanda Hunton (Monroe, N.Y.) had a pair of aces, and senior Sam Curran (Quincy, Mass.) had 12 digs.
Wentworth wraps up its six-match homestand against UMass Dartmouth on Thursday night. Endicott travels to La Verne, Calif. to face Virginia Wesleyan and La Verne at the Leo Invitational on Friday night.
