Seeds Hold as Top Four Advance to Thursday’s GNAC Women’s Volleyball Semifinals

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TOURNAMENT BRACKET

The 2014 GNAC Women's Volleyball Tournament got underway Tuesday evening, as the top four seeds all cruised to quarterfinal victories to set the stage for Thursday night's semifinals.

Top-seeded Emmanuel College breezed past eighth-seeded Lasell College, 3-0, and fourth-seeded Johnson & Wales University swept fifth-seeded University of Saint Joseph, 3-0. Emmanuel will now host JWU Thursday night at 7:00 p.m.

Meanwhile, second-seeded Rivier University handled seventh-seeded Anna Maria College, 3-0, while third-seeded Simmons College took down sixth-seeded Norwich University in four sets to set the stage for Thursday's other semifinal, as Rivier will host the Sharks at 7:00 p.m.

The two programs that prevail will match up in Saturday's GNAC Championship contest. 

#1 EMMANUEL 3, #8 LASELL 0
BOSTON, Mass. - Led by a balanced offensive attack that saw four players record eight kills apiece, Emmanuel took down LaselL, 3-0 (25-16, 25-10, 25-19), in the Quarterfinals Tuesday evening in the Jean Yawkey Center gymnasium. With the victory, the Saints improve to 24-11 on the year and have won 12 of their last 14 matches. The loss ends the Lasers season with a 7-28 record.

Emmanuel posted a combined .352 hitting percentage while holding Lasell to just a .013 clip. Senior Sarah Colby (West Barnstable, Mass.), junior Brittany Tutalo (Johnston, R.I.) and sophomores Cassie Chruscielski (Duluth, Minn.) & Kaitlyn Atkinson (Brookline, N.H.) all recorded eight kills in the win for the Saints.

Freshman outside hitter Meredith Eagan (North Andover, Mass.) posted a team-high six kills for Lasell while freshman middle hitter Odina Ellis (Providence, R.I.) chipped in with five kills for the Lasers.

Cara Callahan (Medway, Mass.) posted a team-high 12 digs while junior setter Shannon Dudley (Morro Bay, Calif.) dished out a match-high 32 helpers in the win.

#2 RIVIER 3, #7 ANNA MARIA 0
NASHUA, N.H. - The Raiders will make a return trip to the GNAC Semifinals after earning a three set victory over the AMCATS at the Muldoon Gymnasium. The Raiders were able to take the 3-0 win by scores of 25-17, 25-14 and 25-7.

Rivier sophomore Molly McCormack (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) paced the offensive attack as she hammered out a game high 13 kills with a .478 hitting percentage. Classmate Dana Mott (Medway, Mass.) was right behind with 11 kills and a .474 hitting percentage. Junior Emily O'Reilly(San Francisco, Calif.) dished out 33 assists and freshman liberoBethany Trevino (Westminster, Colo.) collected 12 digs, a game high. Freshman Jordan Donohue (Meredith, N.H.) also contributed in the win with an .800 hitting percentage on four kills.

The AMCATS were led by junior Jessica Goulet (Lawrence, Mass.) who had three kills and a block solo. Also providing three kills apiece were senior Jacqueline Clinton (Walpole, Mass.) and freshman Telliah Bursie (Cheektowaga, N.Y.). Junior Samantha Parker (Athol, Mass.) had nine assists and junior libero Brittany Jackson (Larchmont, N.Y.) wound up with eight digs on the evening.

The Raiders improved to 26-6 on the season, while Anna Maria finishes at 13-15, setting a single season win record and first ever postseason appearance in the process. 

#3 SIMMONS 3, #6 NORWICH 1
BOSTON, Mass. – First year middle hitter Emmee Ashby (Payson, Ariz.) put away 14 kills and served up a pair of aces to lead Simmons to a 3-1 (25-18, 20-25, 25-20, 25-23) victory Tuesday at Moore Gymnasium.The Sharks have won nine of their last 10 matches and improve to 12-14 on the season, while the Cadets finish their season at 13-15. 

The Sharks' win vaults them into the GNAC semis for the fourth straight year.

Simmons took a 9-6 lead in the first set, fueled by four kills from Ashby. Norwich came back with a 5-1 run to take an 11-10 lead, before the Sharks answered with seven of the next nine points to take a 17-13 cushion. Simmons extended its lead to 23-15, before winning the set, 25-18. 

The teams were tied at 8-8 in the second set, before the Sharks put together a 7-2 spurt to take a 15-10 advantage. The home team looked in control, but the Cadets marched back with a 10-2 stretch, including seven straight points during first year outside hitter Alma Turpin's (Sterling, Va.) service, to take a 20-17 lead. Senior outside hitter Alex Palmer (South Windsor, Conn.) contributed to the run with three kills for Norwich. Simmons later pulled to within 21-19, but the Cadets scored four of the final five points, including the set-deciding kill from Palmer to tie the match at 1-1. 

The Sharks jumped out to an early 6-2 lead in the third frame, but the visitors shot back with a 7-1 burst to take a 9-7 margin. Simmons put together its most impressive run of the night, scoring 14 of the next 17 points, paced by a pair of kills and an ace from Ashby, to take a commanding 21-12 cushion. The Sharks held set point at 24-14, but Norwich reeled off six straight points, including four of Palmer's match-high 17 kills on Turpin's service. Simmons held on for the 25-20 win. 

The fourth set saw the Cadets take an 11-9 lead midway through the frame, before the Sharks went on a 9-3 run with sophomore outside hitter Cailin Fredrickson(Columbia, Md.) chipping in with a pair of kills to help Simmons take an 18-14 lead. The Sharks later maintained a 24-18 margin, but five unanswered points, including a kill from Turpin, pulled Norwich to within 24-23. A setting error gave Simmons the set and match win. 

Ashby hit .206 for the match and added three digs and three total blocks, while Fredrickson finished with seven kills on a .263 hitting mark to go with a pair of digs for the Sharks. First year outside hitter Amber Peterson (Las Vegas, Nev.) made the most of the two sets she played, spiking for six kills on a .308 hitting rate in addition to picking up a pair of digs. Sophomore libero Alex Itasaka (Bradford, Mass.) led the defense with 18 digs to go with a pair of aces, while junior defensive specialistChanel Thomas (Phoenix, Ariz.) got down for 15 digs. Sophomore setter Andalyn Duke (Litchfield Park, Ariz.) contributed on both sides of the net, setting for 34 assists, putting away a pair of kills, firing an ace and picking up 12 digs. 

Palmer hit .250 for the match and added 14 digs to post a double-double for the Cadets in addition to a pair of aces and a block assist. Senior outside hitter Kelsey Mancini (Lynnfield, Mass.) chipped in with nine kills and assisted on a block, while senior Corinne Baita (Rochester, N.H.) wrapped up her career with 23 assists, four kills, an ace, a block assist and a match-high 19 digs. Turpin finished the night with six kills, three aces, 13 digs and a pair of blocks.

#4 JOHNSON & WALES 3, #5 SAINT JOSEPH 0
PROVIDENCE, R.I. –  In the Johnson & Wales' win at the Wildcat Center on Tuesday evening, the Wildcats opened with a 27-25 win in game one for the 1-0 advantage.  They extended their lead to 2-0 with a commanding 25-10 win in the second set and wrapped up the shutout with a 25-15 victory in the third and deciding set.

Johnson & Wales was led by junior Paula Cadavid (Pawtucket, R.I.), who notched a double-double with 12 kills and 17 digs, while junior Marissa Bunnewith (Millbury, Mass.) tallied nine kills and three digs for the Wildcats.  Junior Kellen Tensen (New Canaan, C.T.) notched 31 set assists and eight digs while seniorKaitlin Kuntz (Boone, Iowa) had eight digs in the victory.

Junior Tiffany Mapusaga (Waianae, Hawaii) paced Saint Joseph with seven kills and 13 digs while seniorMegan Williams (Lakeville, Conn.) tallied a double-double with 15 set assists and 13 digs in the loss for the Blue Jays.

With the win, Johnson & Wales improves to 16-15 while Saint Joseph falls to 16-7 on the season.

Information Provided by Emmanuel, Rivier, Simmons, JWU Athletics Communications. 

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