Women's Volleyball: Raiders blank both Lasell & Norwich, 3-0

Story written and posted by Anthony Perry, Rivier University Sports Information Director

NEWTON, MASS – The Rivier University Women's Volleyball team capture two important Great Northeast Athletic Conference victories this afternoon as they swept both Lasell University and Norwich University in straight sets. The Raiders are now 17-5 overall on the season with a 5-1 mark against conference foes.

Game One: Rivier University 3, Lasell University 0 (Final)

Rivier powered their way to an opening match victory over Lasell by set scores of 25-14, 25-14 and 25-19.

Sophomore Sydney Racevicius (Woodbury, Conn.) led the way offensively for the Raiders as she recorded the game-high of 10 kills. Senior Taylor Dunster (Sutton, Mass.) added seven kills as did junior Julia Zargaj (Groveland, Mass.), who also registered a .583 hitting percentage. Sophomore setter Avery Pollard (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) dished out 32 assists in the opener with freshman libero Olivia Garand (Litchfield, Mass.) scooping up 11 digs. Senior Jess Whyte (Plymouth, Mass.) also shined bright as she had a .750 hitting percentage on six kills.

Lasell was guided by Kiana Perez Diaz who had eight kills and nine digs. Jess Langan handed out 12 assists while Karissa Gaughan picked up six digs in the loss.

Game Two: Rivier University 3, Norwich University 0 (Final)

The train kept rolling for Rivier in their final game of the day as they swept the Cadets by set scores of 25-21, 25-19 and 25-19.

Whyte remained red-hot as she registered the game-high of 13 kills and a .611 hitting percentage. Dunster was right behind Whyte with 12 kills and Zargaj added seven kills and two total blocks. Pollard once again directed the offense with 31 helpers while Dunster led the back line with 16 digs. Racevicius chipped in with six kills and 10 digs in the straight set win for Rivier.

Norwich saw Kathryn Farnum hammer down a team-high eight kills while both Julia Schroeder and Marissa Perrotti knocked down six kills each. Sarah Farnum handed out 21 assists and Brianna Dawson registered the team-high of 13 digs. Perrotti was also electric defensively as she collected four total blocks in the loss.
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The pair of GNAC wins sets up an all-important matchup on Tuesday night when the Raiders return to action. They will host Johnson and Wales University to the Muldoon Gymnasium for a 7pm start time. The Wildcats are currently ranked 18th in the country according to the latest AVCA Coaches Poll and have a record of 17-4 and a perfect 6-0 record in the conference.