The Owls hosted the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Boston Beacons Saturday, Oct. 15 at 1 p.m. in the Spaulding Gymnasium for the first time in four years. KSC won the match 3-1, earning the team’s fourth consecutive win.
This match saw a team-high 17 kills on a .361 hitting percentage by senior captain Sydney Johnson. The Owls began the match with a 25-17 win in the first set, out-hitting the Beacons .250 to .109. The Owls fought back anytime UMB tried to narrow the point gap. After the Beacons trimmed a five-point deficit to two twice, Keene State scored five out of seven to go back up five points and then, after leading 20-17, scored the last five on a block, two kills and an ace.
UMB had their best attacking percentage of any set, .312, in the second set to even the match at one as they took a 13-9 edge after five straight points. They then put up another 5-0 burst to turn a 20-20 tie into a set win. Keene State had rebounded to retake a 17-16 lead, but could not combat the Beacons’ offense. UMB also had the only three blocks of the frame.
The Owls bounced back quickly, as they outhit the Beacons in the final two sets. In the third set, Keene State never trailed, going up 5-2 on a kill from sophomore middle blocker Molly Wetherbee. Consecutive swings from Johnson and first-year outside hitter Gigi Stake made the score 9-6, and later a UMB error put the Owls up 13-9. The Beacons rallied, forcing the only tie of the set at 17 after three points in a row.
Another swing by Johnson and an ace from junior setter Kacie Blanchet put Keene State in front 22-19. Despite the Beacons getting close to taking the lead two more times after that, two kills by senior right side hitter Cassidy Samuelson gave the Owls the match lead for the second time. The Beacons had 17 spikes to the Owls’ 14 in the third set, but were outhit .314 to .222.
Despite UMB coming from behind to threaten to steal the fourth set, the Owls emerged by holding them to just .095 attacking while connecting at a .200 percentage themselves. Johnson, Stake, and junior middle blocker Veronica Kroha each had four kills, with Kroha and Stake committing just two miscues.
The Owls hit over .200 for the fourth consecutive match, running their winning streak to that many in a row. While the teams were trading momentum back and forth, the Owls took it home with a final score of 3-1.
The Owls had not beaten the Beacons at home since a 3-2 win in the 2008 Little East Conference (LEC) championship match. The Owls will be back on the court Thursday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. to host Western New England University.
Piper Pavelich can be contacted
at ppavelich@kscequinox.com
