Owls Sweep Anna Maria and Fisher

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State women's volleyball picked up a pair of three set wins over Anna Maria College (25-13, 25-16, 25-13) and Fisher College (25-19, 25-19, 25-14) in a pair of non-conference matches from Paxton, Mass. on Saturday afternoon.

The two victories move the Owls above the .500 mark for the season, advancing to 9-8 on the season. Hanna Nihill (Chandler, Ariz.) registered a game-leading 15 kills in the second match against Fisher while Emily Washkalavitch (Oxford, Pa.) notched 11 kills to lead all players in the opener versus the AMCATS.

GAME 1 VS. ANNA MARIA

The Owls overcame an early three point deficit in set one, pulling ahead after a six point burst on the service game of Morgan Dority (Walpole, Mass.) gave Westfield a 12-9 lead. The Owls never trailed for the remainder of the set, scoring ten of the last 11 points of the set to take a 1-0 lead.

Westfield would not trail for the remaining two sets with Emma Nihill (Chandler, Ariz.) finishing the second set with a kill while Washkalavitch capped the sweep with an ace.

Dority led the Owls with 25 assists and 14 digs while the Owls as a team totaled 10 blocks and a season-tying 17 aces. Washkalavitch and Allie Hill (St. Clair Shores, Mich.) both paced the serving game with five aces apiece.

GAME 2 VS. FISHER

The offense ran heavily through Hanna Nihill who tallied a career-high 15 kills in the Owls second match of the day. Nihill's 15 kills came on just 29 total attacks, good for a .483 hitting percentage.

A tightly contested first set was closed out in commanding fashion for the Owls which recorded six of the final eight points of the frame thanks to back-to-back kills from Hanna Nihill.

Westfield held a ten point lead in set two and had to fend off a late run from Fisher which converted seven of nine points to close the gap to five. However, the Owls held onto that lead thanks in part to a strong start with an attacking error from Fisher giving Westfield a 2-0 lead in the match.

The Owls scored the first six points of set three to run away with the final frame, sending Westfield home after an extremely successful day, winning all six sets played on the day.

Dority continued to display her versatility offensively and defensively, pacing the squad with 27 assists and 14 digs.

Westfield State will return home for their next match to take on Bay Path on Tuesday at 7:00 P.M. from the Woodward Center in Westfield, Mass.