BEVERLY, Mass. (courtesy Endicott College ) - Brandeis University got a 10 kill, nine dig effort out of senior Piera Carfagno (Los Angeles, Calif./Campbell Hall School), as the Judges sentenced the Gulls to a 3-1 setback in non-conference women's volleyball action on Thursday night in Beverly, Mass. Brandeis improves to 8-3 overall (0-0 UAA) while Endicott falls to 5-3 (0-0 TCCC).
The Judges came out firing in the opening set, as Brandeis cruised to a 25-17 victory in the first frame. Rookie middle blocker Becca Fischer (San Antonio, Texas/Clark) and junior outside hitter Paige Blasco (Greeley, Colo./Frontier Acad.) each had three kills to begin the night, while junior setter Abby Blasco (Greeley, Colo./Frontier Acad.) dished out 11 assists. The Judges swung at an impressive .429 clip in the first set.
Endicott responded by notching a 25-22 win in game two, aided by a set-changing service run by Steph Wiese (Higganum, Conn.) that included a series of six-straight service aces. The senior turned a one point deficit into a five point lead, while also forcing the Judges to burn a timeout in the process. Wiese and freshman Ashley Norley (Sudbury, Mass.) combined for six kills and eight digs in the three point victory.
The third set was the most competitive of the evening as extra points were needed to decide a winner. With the score knotted at 25-all, senior Bridget McAllister (Santa Clara, Calif./Presentation) powered home a kill on the far side to give Brandeis a one point lead. The following play resulted in an assisted block by both McAllister and junior middle blocker Nicole Smith (Marietta, Ga./Alan C Pope), giving the Judges the crucial third frame.
The fourth set proved similar to the night's opening game, as Brandeis cruised to a 25-17 win. The Judges were led by four kills and no errors on seven swings by Carfagno (.571) to seal the victory.
In all, Carfagno ended the night with 10 kills and nine digs, while Paige Blasco had eight kills and 17 digs. Abby Blasco chipped in with 35 assists and 10 digs in the winning effort.
Endicott was led by Steph Wiese's game-high 11 kills, eight aces and 11 digs. The eight aces by Wiese ranks sixth all-time in program history. Brittany Phillips (Sudbury, Mass.), Amy Grigg (Vernon, Conn.) and Ashley Norley all ended the night with five kills apiece. Freshman Mollie Potsma (Everett, Wash.) and Ally Murphy (Gilford, N.H.) had 14 and 13 assists, respectively.
Brandeis takes the weekend off before meeting Tufts University on Tuesday evening in Waltham, Mass. Endicott opens The Commonwealth Coast Conference play on Saturday in Springfield, Mass. at a tri-match with Roger Williams University and Western New England beginning at 1:00 p.m.