Women’s Volleyball Shuts Down BSU Comeback, Wins 3-1

NEWPORT, R.I. – The Rivier women's volleyball team traveled to a neutral site to face off against non-conference opponent Bridgewater St. on Saturday afternoon and came away with a four-set victory over the Bears at Rodgers Recreation Center. The Raiders won by set scores of 25-21, 20-25, 25-13, 25-19 to jump to 2-2 on the season, while the loss kept Bridgewater St. in search of its first victory.

After falling behind 17-14 midway through the first set, Rivier would use a combination of kills, aces, and unforced errors to secure a five-point swing and force the Bears into a timeout now leading 19-17. Rivier would continue to pile on the points as back-to-back kills from Sam Driend and Lily Sills followed by a bad set from Bridgewater St. would increase the lead to 22-17. Despite a comeback bid from the Bears, a service error on set point would give the Raiders a 1-0 lead in the match. Rivier hit .273 in the opening set while tacking on four aces.

Neither team would budge for most of the second set until three straight points for Bridgewater St. at 19-19 would force Rivier into a timeout, trailing 23-19. Despite one kill from Brynn Roche in the late going, the Bears would take set two using back-to-back kills from Kim Gowell.

In the third, Rivier would bounce out to a 12-8 lead thanks in part to serving runs from Ali Rivera and Driend that accumulated seven points. Later, while leading 13-10, the Raiders recorded 11 consecutive points to make it 24-10, helping them soundly take the set by a score of 25-13. The Rivier defense limited the Bears' offense to a -.217 hitting percentage in the frame.

Once again, the Raiders held their opponents to a negative hitting percentage in the fourth, as Bridgewater St. hit at a -.043 clip. Rivier got out to a quick 7-1 lead with a Roche kill sending the Bears back to the bench for a timeout. The Raiders would not allow the Bears to get closer than three for the remainder of the match, as Rivier won 25-19 to secure their second victory of the young season.

Driend and Rivera each led the way in kills and aces, followed closely by Sills. Roche recorded five kills on eight errorless swings to post a team-best .625 hitting percentage on the afternoon while notching 2.5 blocks. Ryan Hicks once again led the offense, dishing out 25 helpers in the triumph. Sofia Pawlusik led the defensive efforts with 16 digs.

Rivier will return to action on Wednesday, Sept. 13 in a road tilt at Smith with the first serve scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Ainsworth Gym.