MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME VOLLEYBALL

Saturday, October 29, 2016

Woodward Center, Westfield, Mass.

GAME #1 FINAL:          WESTFIELD STATE 3, MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 0

                                    (Game Scores:  25-18, 25-15, 25-10)

GAME #2 FINAL:          NICHOLS 3, MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 1

                                    (Game Scores:  25-21, 25-22, 17-25, 25-23)

WESTFIELD, Mass. --  Sophomore Brianna Starkey (Rockland, Mass.) and freshman Natasha Belardo (Springfield, Mass.) each notched nine kills to lead Westfield State to a 3-0 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference volleyball victory over Massachusetts Maritime Saturday afternoon in the opening contest of a tri-match played at the Woodward Center, as the Buccaneers closed out their 2016 campaign with a 3-1 non-league setback in the middle match to Nichols.

Senior Jen Green (Charlton, Mass.) added eight kills in the host Owls’ (13-17, 5-1 MASCAC) 25-18, 25-15, 25-10 opening triumph, while junior Brigid Murray (Norfolk, Mass.) chipped in with 28 set assists, four digs and three service aces.  Sophomore Lizzie Taylor (Medfield, Mass.) registered digs for Westfield State, which also received nine digs from junior Tiara Vaughn (East Falmouth, Mass.).

Senior Charleen Klangos (Lowell, Mass.) collected seven kills and six digs in the opening setback for the Buccaneers (7-23, 0-6 MASCAC), who also received 11 digs and a pair of kills from freshman Marie Harrison (Weymouth, Mass.).  Sophomore Jennifer Roy (Attleboro, Mass.) and freshman Stephanie Robbins (Marshfield, Mass.) each chipped in with a pair of kills for Massachusetts Maritime, while freshmen Michelle Sheehan (Attleboro, Mass.) and Christina Ruggeri (Bourne, Mass.) recorded 13 set assists and 15 digs, respectively.

Freshman J’ena Baker (Rockledge, Fla.) posted a double-double effort of 24 kills and 15 digs in Nichols’ (6-20) 25-21, 25-22, 17-25, 25-23 middle match victory over Massachusetts Maritime, as sophomore Sabrina Boermeester (Billerica, Mass.) chipped in with 15 kills and six digs for the winners.  Freshman Megan Gardner (South Deerfield, Mass.) added 41 set assists, 11 digs and six kills for the Bison, who also received a combined 30 digs from junior Hebron Abadi (Malden, Mass.) and freshman Jayla Simmons (Rockledge, Fla.).

Klangos closed out her career with a double-double effort of 13 kills, 19 digs and four set assists for the Buccaneers in the middle match setback, while senior Meaghan Brain (Hanson, Mass.) collected eight kills in her final collegiate match.  Harrison added 16 digs and seven kills for Massachusetts Maritime, which also received five kills and nine digs from Roy as well as three kills from Robbins.  Sheehan notched a career-high 33 set assists to go with 11 digs and three kills for the Buccaneers, while Ruggeri chipped in with 18 digs and three kills in the second setback.

Westfield State has earned the second seed in next week’s Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference championships and will play in next Saturday’s second semifinal round match at Framingham State.  Today’s tri-match marked the season finales for Massachusetts Maritime, which tied the school single-season record for victories this fall, while Nichols closed out its first collegiate varsity campaign with today’s competition.