BABSON PARK, Mass.—Sophomore
Ailsa Munro (Sylmar, Calif.) led a balanced attack with 10 kills and four blocks, and junior
Angelina Holm (Denver, Colo.) added eight kills and a match-high five blocks as No. 22 Babson College defeated visiting Springfield College in four sets, 25-18, 21-25, 25-19, 25-20, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's volleyball action on Saturday afternoon inside Staake Gymnasium.
Babson extended its winning streak to five and improved to 22-5 overall and 10-1 in league play while securing its first outright NEWMAC regular season title in program history. Springfield had its six-match winning streak snapped and is now 20-6 overall and 8-3 in the conference.
First-year
Lia Gonzalez (Miami, Fla.) registered eight kills and five digs while hitting .467, sophomore
Devon Burke (Newtonville, Mass.) added seven kills and senior
Hailey Fouche (Montclair, N.J.) provided six kills and three blocks for the Beavers. Classmate
Zoe Ackerman (Aurora, Colo.) finished with 34 assists, 11 digs, three blocks and three aces, while junior
Sabina Frosk (Coppell, Texas) led all players with 12 digs in the victory.
Alexa Bonato (Woodbridge, Conn.) recorded a match-high 11 kills, Ahunna James (Plainville, Mass.) totaled 10 kills and nine digs, and Gabbie Weissgarber (Colorado Springs, Colo.) also registered 10 kills to pace the Pride. Tori Colosimo (Fairport, N.Y.) handed out 31 assists, Avery Chandler (Stoneville, N.C.) led all players with eight service aces, and Jodi Saelua (Mililani, Hawaii) tied for match-high honors with five blocks in the loss.
The Green and White trailed by as many as four early in the first set and was down 16-15 before going on a 10-2 run to end the frame. Holm recorded two kills and an ace, and Fouche added a pair of kills to build a 23-17 cushion, while sophomore
Misaki Harte (San Jose, Calif.) closed out the rally with one of her two service aces.
Springfield trailed just once in game two and held a trio of five-point leads but needed a late run to even the match. Weissgarber twice produced kills after Babson had pulled even, the second of which gave the visitors a 22-21 lead, and Saelua followed with two blocks and a kill to end the set.
The Beavers returned the favor in the third, putting away 14 kills and hitting .333 on the way to recording a six-point victory to go in front 2-1. Leading 12-11, the hosts got kills from four different players and a block by Holm and Fouche during an 11-point stretch to open up a 20-14 advantage that would get no closer than four the rest of the way.
Babson started fast in the fourth set scoring seven of the first eight points and matching its largest lead of the game at 16-6 on an ace by Ackerman. The Pride cut its deficit to just four on three occasions, the last coming at 20-16, but first-year
Julia Garcia (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) answered with a kill and combined on a block with Holm to restore a six-point edge.
The Beavers hit .333 over the final two sets and .241 for the match while finishing with the edge in kills (47-42), digs (48-43) and blocks (9-6). Springfield hit just .162 and committed 15 service errors in the loss.
Babson, which is the top seed in the NEWMAC Tournament will host eighth-seeded Wellesley in a quarterfinal on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The fifth-seeded Pride will travel to fourth-seeded Smith on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
MATCH NOTES
• The Beavers are 12-21 all-time against Springfield but have won 10 of the last 14 matches between the teams over the last decade.
• Babson captured its fourth NEWMAC regular season title (2014, 2019, 2021) and earned the top seed the conference tournament for the first time since 2021.
• The Green and White is now 11-1 this season inside Staake Gymnasium.
• The Beavers are 21-1 when hitting .200 or better and 22-2 when recording more kills than their opponents this fall.
