Western Conn. 	19 	29 	14
Coast Guard 		30 	31 	30

TEAM RECORDS: W 19-13; C 22-6.

Coast Guard jumped out to a 15-6 lead in game three and wrapped up the match with a 30-14 win.

            Garcia made an immediate impact in the Rhode Island College starting lineup, pacing the Anchorwomen in blocks (127), hitting percentage (.302), kills (465), and service aces (61), while ranking second in digs (305). The senior middle hitter from Riverside, R.I. led the conference circuit in blocks and kills, while third in service aces and fifth in hitting percentage. Garcia was just 14 winners shy of breaking the program’s all-time single season kills mark. She was named the Little East Conference Offensive Player of the Week twice, while earning Defensive Player of the Week once. Garcia is the first Rhode Island College student-athlete to be named offensive player of the year.

            Spears became the first Plymouth State University player to be honored as the Little East Conference Defensive Player of the Year. The Meredith, N.H. product sat atop the conference standings in digs (565), while ranking fifth in service aces (59). Spears is making her first appearance on the all-conference teams, earning first-team honors. She will lead the Panthers into the quarterfinal round of the ECAC New England Tournament, marking Plymouth State’s six straight postseason berth.

            Crosby is the third Western Connecticut State University student-athlete to be selected Little East Conference Rookie of the Year. The East Haven, Conn. native led the Colonials in kills (285), while ranking second in digs (288) and service aces (37). She is the lone rookie to be recognized on the all-conference teams this season. Crosby was named the Little East Conference Rookie of the Week twice.

            Poole led Western Connecticut State University to a second place finish in the Little East Conference standings with a 5-1 mark in the conference circuit. The Colonials advanced to the championship match of the Little East Conference Tournament, but fell to upset-minded Eastern Connecticut State University this past weekend. Poole will lead his charges into the ECAC New England Tournament with a quarterfinal match at Coast Guard.      

KEENE, N.H. 11/3/07 – Fifth seed Eastern Connecticut State University swept second seed Western Connecticut State University 3-0 in the championship game of the 2007 Little East Conference women’s volleyball tournament played Saturday afternoon at Keene State’s Spaulding Gym.

With the win ECSU receives the LEC’s automatic berth to the NCAA Division III tournament.

It’s the third straight championship for the Warriors (11-26), who also captured LEC titles from 1995-1998. Western Conn. (19-12) won four consecutive LEC titles from1999-2003.

Eastern Conn. overcame a 17-9 deficit to win the first game 30-26. The Warriors who trailed throughout the second game got the final two points at the end to pullout a 31-29 victory in the second game. ECSU led from start to finish to claim the third game 30-21.

Senior setter Priscilla Dougherty (Island Park, N.Y.), who finished with four service aces and 32 assists was named the tournaments’ most outstanding player.

The Warriors featured a balanced offense with sophomore hitter Lindsey Odell (Dover Plains, N.Y.) (12 kills), junior hitter Sandra Jaques (Milford, Conn.) (11 kills), and Alex Silvestros (10 kills) leading the way. Junior setter Jen Braswell (Wilton, Conn.) had four service aces each and Lauren Odell (Island Park, N.Y.) added 23 digs.

Sophomore middle hitter Rebecca Stein (Kingston, N.Y.) and freshman hitter Danielle Spangler (Simi Valley, Ca.) had nine kills each to lead the Colonials’ attack. Sophomore libero Christina Bell (Prospect, Conn.) and senior defensive specialists Krystal Wilson (Meridan, Conn.) had 13 and 11 digs respectively, and freshman setter Samantha Hathaway finished with 33 assists.

The upset-minded Warriors posted a 3-2 quarterfinal win over R.I.College and a 3-2 victory against top seed Keene State on the way to capturing the title.

WCSU advanced to the finals with a 3-1 semifinal win over Plymouth State.

EASTERN CONN. AND WESTERN CONN. ADVANCE TO FINALS

#3 Plymouth State (20-11) 	27 	30 	28 	27 	1
#2 Western Conn. (19-11) 	30 	28 	30 	30 	3

Danbury, Conn. (Oct. 30) - Freshman setter Samantha Hathaway (Milford, CT) had 59 assists, 16 digs, and two aces as Western Connecticut State University advanced to the semifinal round of the Little East Tournament with a 3-2 victory over UMass Dartmouth at Feldman Arena Tuesday night.
     The second seeded Colonials (now 18-11 on the season) will face the third seed, Plymouth State (20-10), in a semifinal match on Friday evening, with the winner advancing to the conference championship game on Saturday at noon.
     Natalie Crosby (East Haven, CT) led the WestConn offensive attack with 20 kills, while Becca Stein (Kingston, NY) contributed 17 kills and five blocks.
     UMass Dartmouth, who concludes their season with an overall record of 6-20, was led by Hilary Teichert (Pocasset, MA) who had 24 kills, Nazareth Cardoso (Brockton, MA) who had 20 kills and 23 digs, and Mellanie Staiger (Bourne, MA) who dished out 44 assists.
     WestConn jumped out to an early 2-0 lead over UMass Dartmouth, but the Corsairs fought back to win games three and four to even the match at 2-2. WestConn regrouped to win the deciding game and take the 3-2 victory.
     In the match’s first game, WestConn’s Hathaway began serving with the Colonials trailing 11-5 and served 10 straight points (including one ace). The momentum stayed in WestConn’s favor as it pulled away for a 30-20 victory.
     In game four, WestConn called a timeout with the score 28-28 and the Colonials leading the match 2-1, but UMass Dartmouth took the advantage and prevailed 31-29 to force a fifth and deciding game.
     The difference in game five was another service run by Hathaway who turned a 3-1 deficit for the Colonials into a 9-3 WestConn lead. UMass Dartmouth called its last timeout with the score 11-4, but WestConn maintained its focus and took the final game 15-7.
     WestConn’s season continues this Friday when it travels to Keene State, the host for this year’s LEC semifinal and championship matches. Friday's semifinal match against Plymouth State University, which defeated UMass Boston, 3-0 on Tuesday, is slated for 4 p.m.  Keene State will face Eastern Connecticut at 6 p.m.
     The LEC Championship game is slated for 12 noon on Saturday.

BOSTON, MA – The University of Massachusetts Boston volleyball team split a pair of matches in a Little East Conference tri-match, falling to Western Connecticut State University, 30-24, 30-22, 30-27 and defeating Rhode Island College, 28-30, 24-30, 30-25, 32-30, 15-11, today at the Clark Athletic Center on the campus of UMass Boston.  The Beacons are now 15-13 overall and 2-4 in the LEC.  Western Connecticut State also defeated Rhode Island College, 30-24, 30-26, 30-22, during the day and is now 17-11 and 5-1, while Rhode Island College is 15-16 and 2-4.

UMass Boston was swept by Western Connecticut to open the day’s action as senior outside hitter Heather Keogh (Monroe, CT) led the way for the Colonials with 10 kills and an outstanding .500 hitting percentage, while adding seven digs, a pair of blocks and an ace.  Senior middle hitter Kathryn Kupchik (Cromwell, CT) hit an eye-popping .692 for the match with nine kills to go with four blocks and a dig, while freshman outside hitter Danielle Spangler (Simi Valley, CA) smashed nine kills, fired two aces and came up with three digs.  Freshman setter Samantha Hathaway (Milford, CT) set for 35 assists in addition to a match-high four aces, three digs, three blocks and a kill and senior libero Krystal Wilson (Meriden, CT) led the defense with a match-best 18 digs. 

Sophomore outside hitter Kate White (Plymouth, MA) spiked for 12 kills and owned a .440 hitting percentage and added two digs and a block for the Beacons, while senior middle hitter Denise Hill (Sabana Seca, PR) put down eight kills on a .636 hitting mark to go with a block.  Senior setter Randle Stock (Hopkinton, MA) directed the action for UMB with 30 assists and added four digs, while freshman libero Emily Thompson (Wausau, WI) got down for 14 digs.  

White was an incredible offensive force for the Beacons in the five-game win over Rhode Island College, putting away a career-high 29 kills, including 12 in the fourth game of the match and maintained a .400 hitting mark.  She also picked up seven digs and served up an ace.  Sophomore middle hitter Natalie Crist (Santa Maria, CA) spiked for 13 kills to go with three digs and a block, while freshman outside hitter Karly Sanchez (Lawrence, MA) also smashed 13 kills in addition to a block and a dig.  Stock racked up 52 assists to give her 1,397 for her career, just 11 short of the UMass Boston all-time mark.  She also picked up eight digs and served up an ace to go with a block, while Thompson came up with 23 digs.

Senior outside hitter Sherri Heard (Coventry, RI) led the Anchorwomen with 17 kills and added four blocks and a dig, while senior middle hitter Kimiyo Garcia (Riverside, RI) put down 15 kills, fired three aces, made a pair of blocks and scooped up a team-high 17 digs.  Senior setter Amy Souza (Tiverton, RI) set for 26 assists, served up three aces and collected five digs. 

            Becca Stein (Kingston, NY) led the WestConn offensive attack with 13 kills on the night, and chipped in on defense with six blocks.
            Krystal Wilson (Meridan, CT) was the Colonials’ defensive leader with 34 digs.

            Westfield State, now 13-13, was led by Stephanie Bartkus (North Merrick, NY) who had seven kills, Elissa Genereux (Belchertown, MA) who dished out 23 assists, and Krista Grifoni (Peabody, MA) who made 24 digs.

            Prior to tonight’s match, WestConn recognized the accomplishments of three seniors, Heather Keogh (Monroe, CT), Kathryn Kupchick (Cromwell, CT), and Krystal Wilson.  All three have been fixtures in the Colonials’ starting lineup throughout the 2007 season.

October 20th, 2007. Quincy, MA. The Crusaders came in today looking to rebound, after a five game loss on Thursday, against the Colonials of Western Connecticut State University. Though it was their Homecoming, the Crusaders were unable to rise to their heights and were outplayed through the match. They dropped the first game 30-16 and then came closest to challenging for a game when they pulled to within two points of the lead, but the Colonials recaptured the momentum and won by four 30-26. Game three was the Colonials most impressive match as they churned through to a 30-14 win, sweeping the Crusaders in three.

Crusader freshman Cassandra Auguste (Montgomery Village, MD/Watkins Mill) contributed valiantly with 12 kills in 29 attempts and junior Captain Christina Ludwick (Meredith, NH/ Laconia Christian) added 16 assists.

WestConn Highlights vs. Eastern Nazarene:

Samantha Hathaway - 43 Assists, 6 Digs, 3 Aces

Natalie Crosby - 15 Kills, 11 Digs, 2 Aces

Katie Kupchik - 9 Kills, 2 Blocks, .500 Hitting %