CORSAIRS DOWN GREYHOUNDS IN HOME OPENER

NORTH DARTMOUTH, MA-A small but vocal crown and a hard-fought victory in the third game gave the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth volleyball team all the momentum they needed in their first home match of the season.

The Corsairs pulled away in the fourth game to defeat Assumption, 30-27, 22-30, 30-27 and 30-18 at the Tripp Athletic Center Monday evening.

The Corsairs trailed, 24-21, in the critical third game when kills by junior setter Lauren Daly (Brockton, MA/Brockton HS) and freshman middle blocker Hilary Teichart (Bourne, MA/Bourne HS) ignited a 6-1 run that gave UMass Dartmouth a 27-25 lead. Assumption tied it moments later, but a kill by senior outside hitter Kerrie Mandeville (Walpole, MA/Walpole HS) and a pair of hitting errors gave the Corsairs the game. UMD took a 15-9 lead in game four and was never caught.

Daly had 45 assists for the Corsairs, sophomore middle hitter Nazareth Cardoso (Brockton, MA/Brockton HS) had 15 kills, Teichart added 14 and Mandeville had 10. Senior Damara Moses (Dartmouth, MA/Dartmouth HS) led the UMD defense with 25 digs.

AC setter Lindy Dhulst had 34 assists. Senior outside hitter Tess Wurm (New Bedford, MA) had 14 kills and Kristen McCafferty added 12.

“We saw that they were trying to set their outside hitters, so we adjusted our defense and we played better,” said UMass Dartmouth Head Coach Jocelyn Costa. “The third game was huge. If we had let them back in it and they won that game, they would have had all the momentum going into the fourth game. I thought Damara Moses had a huge game for us defensively.”

The Corsairs improved to 4-6 with the victory, while Assumption fell to 3-6 with the defeat. UMass Dartmouth will return to action when they visit Southern Maine Wednesday, September 28^th. 

UMASS DARTMOUTH VOLLEYBALL