Women's Volleyball: Raiders sendoff seniors with sweep of Simmons

(Nashua, N.H.) The Rivier University Women's Volleyball team bid adieu to their three graduating seniors this morning as they swept visiting Simmons University, 3-0 in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference contest inside the Muldoon Gymnasium. The win closes out the Raiders 2018 overall record at 25-6 with an 11-1 mark in the conference while the Sharks slide to 14-14 and a 7-5 record against GNAC foes.

Prior to the start of the contest, the Volleyball program honored their departing seniors as Hayley Macken (Clifton Park, N.Y.), Courtney Collins (Litchfield, N.H.) and Taylor White (Dunstable, Mass.) were all celebrated with their families on the court.

As for the match, the Raiders took the three sets by scores of 25-21, 25-20 and 25-14. Collins led the way for Rivier as she totaled eight kills and four total blocks. Freshman Sydney Racevicius (Woodbury, Conn.) also had herself an eight-kill performance with six service aces while junior Jessica Whyte (Plymouth, Mass.) swung at a .444 clip on five kills and four total blocks. Macken directed the offense with 23 assists while also contributing with five kills, five digs and five total blocks. Freshman Avery Pollard (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) paced the backline with 12 digs and White rounded out her career with five digs and an assist.

The Sharks saw freshman Krissy Lloyd (Tampa, Fla.) accumulate the game-high with 10 kills and a .444 hitting percentage. Sophomore Riley Roberge (Peoria, Ariz.) chipped in with a six-kill effort and freshman Reilly Coombs (Deland, Fla.) added four kills in the loss. Junior Kenna McCarthy (Shelter Island, N.Y.) dished out 12 helpers and sophomore Faith Gray-Williams (Las Vegas, Nev.) also handed out double-digit assists with 10. Sophomore Julia Fusco (Beverly, Mass.) led the Sharks with 10 digs on the defensive end.

Next up for both programs will be the GNAC Tournament on Tuesday evening. The Raiders have locked up the overall #2 seed and will host their Quarterfinal matchup starting at 7pm. Simmons, meanwhile, will await until the end of the day to determine where they will travel to on Tuesday evening.