Owls Defeat Eastern Connecticut, Fall vs Keene

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State's Nihill twins, Emma and Hanna, combined for 26 kills to help lead the Owls to a four-set victory against Eastern Connecticut State (25-22, 25-15, 22-25, 26-24) on Saturday afternoon from Willimantic, Conn. The Owls also faced Keene State earlier in the day, falling in straight sets.

GAME 2 VS. EASTERN CONNECTICUT (25-22, 25-15, 22-25, 26-24)

Hanna Nihill (Chandler, Ariz.) led the Owls with 14 kills on a blistering .462 hitting percentage. Twin-sister Emma Nihill (Chandler, Ariz.) was right behind with 12 kills, joining first-year Sydney Cummins (Nicholasville, Ky.) in double-digit kills.

Julia Dangel-Garcia (Ashland, Mass.) and Morgan Dority (Walpole, Mass.) dished out 45 of the team's 49 total assists on the match with Dangel-Garcia leading both sides with 23 assists.

First-year Chloe Schuld (Sycamore, Ill.) racked up a team-high 15 digs for the Owls while Sarah Bingham (Reno, Nev.) registered a pair of blocks.

The Owls closed set one in powerful fashion, racking up four of the final five points of the set to break a 21 all tie to win the set. Cummins and Emma Nihill generated consecutive kills, then Dority finished with a set-winning slam.

In the second frame, Westfield turned a slim 9-8 lead into a seven-point advantage as a service ace from Emily Washkalavitch (Oxford, Penn.) capped a scoring burst to push the Owls ahead, 16-9. With the Owls in control, Hanna Nihill slammed the door shut in set two with three straight kills to put Westfield ahead two sets to none.

After dropping the third set, the Warriors were on the verge of tying the match, leading 24-22. Emma Nihill kept the set alive with a kill, then an attacking error from Eastern knotted up the set at 24 apiece. Another Warriors attacking error vaulted the Owls to match point. Dangel-Garcia punctuated a fourth-straight Owls point with an ace, sending the Owls to victory.

GAME 1 VS KEENE STATE (25-12, 25-10, 25-13)

Natalie Dos Santos (Pittsfield, Mass.) paced Westfield with five kills in game one followed by Olivia Harris (Massapequa, N.Y.) with four kills and Siobhan Meyer (Long Island, N.Y.) with four as well.

Nathalya Felix (Springfield, Mass.) supplied a team-high 14 assists and Erica Majka (Agawam, Mass.) chipped in 11 digs.

The Owls are now 6-10 after the split at Eastern Connecticut.

Westfield State will face-off in a rematch with Keene State for their next match on Wednesday at 7:00 P.M. from the Woodward Center in Westfield, Mass.