BABSON PARK, Mass.—Junior Lauren Gips (Orlando, Fla.) recorded four of her career-high 18 kills in the decisive game as No. 22 Babson College rallied from two set down to defeat visiting Springfield College in five, 17-25, 25-27, 25-20, 25-20, 15-12, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's volleyball action on Tuesday night inside Staake Gymnasium.

With its eighth straight win, Babson improves to 9-1 overall and 3-0 in conference play, while Springfield dips to 7-2 overall and 2-1 in the NEWMAC.

Gips hit .417 and added seven digs and three blocks, while senior Jordan Lapins (Calgary, Alberta) contributed season highs of 13 kills and 17 digs to lead the Beavers. Classmate Laura Zuloaga (Naples, Fla.) finished with nine kills, fellow senior Martina Jankovic Chin (Zapresic, Croatia) chipped in with eight kills and four blocks, and sophomore Lauren Griffin (Los Altos Hills, Calif.) put away a career-high seven kills in the win.

Graduate student Izzy Seebold (Concord, N.C.) recorded 50 assists and 11 digs and first-year Roz Cabuena (Kailua, Hawaii) led five players in double figures with a match-high 27 digs for Babson.

Sophomore Natalie Billet (Commack, N.Y.) finished with 13 kills and 12 digs, first-year Maeve Voltz (Bay Shore, N.Y.) contributed eight kills and five blocks, and sophomore Jamie Albrecht (Selden, N.Y.) added eight kills and three blocks to lead the Pride. Graduate student Ally Townsend (Hummelstown, Pa.) led four players in double figures with 26 digs, while sophomore Morgan Stafford (Corbett, Ore.) dished out 20 assists in the loss.

Springfield led throughout the first set and took advantage of three straight errors by the hosts to overcome a 25-24 deficit for a 2-0 advantage. The Green and White trailed for much of the third before going on a 9-2 run to extend the match. Lapins put Babson in front for good 20-19 with her fifth kill of the stanza and Gips put away three of her own during the spurt.

Down 8-6 early in the fourth, Zuloaga recorded three kills in the span of four points to spark a 7-0 run to give the Beavers a 13-8 advantage on an ace by Seebold. Springfield twice got within two, the last time coming at 21-19 before Jankovic Chin and Zuloaga combined on a block and Griffin followed with a kill to help push the match to a fifth set.

The decisive game featured six ties and three lead changes with neither team leading by more than three. Griffin and Gips combined on a block to put Babson in front 8-5 but the Pride responded with six of the next eight points to go in front 11-10 on a kill by Billet. Jankovic Chin tied it up with a kill and the Beavers took advantage of back-to-back errors to build a 13-11 lead.

Lapins made it 14-12 with a kill and Gips and Jankovic Chin closed out the victory by combining for a block on match point.

Babson returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Mount Holyoke and UMass Dartmouth beginning at 1:30 p.m., while Springfield takes on Trinity on Friday at 6 p.m.

MATCH NOTES
• The Beavers are 8-19 all-time against Springfield with four of the victories coming in five sets.
• Tuesday marked just the second time in the last 12 matches between the programs that the team winning the first set did not go on to win the contest.
• After hitting -.079 with 25 errors over the first two sets, Babson responded by hitting .213 and recording 45 kills over the final three games of the match.
• The Beavers have dropped the first two games in both of their five-set victories this fall.
• The Green and White held Springfield to a season-low .086 hitting percentage and are now 53-1 when opponents hit .150 or below since 2019.