NEWTON, Mass. – Mount Ida College tallied 16 service aces and got 12 kills from freshman Mary Kate Reidy (Agawam, Mass.) to help them defeat Pine Manor College 3-0 (25-13, 25-20, 25-23) in their opening game of 2014 at Mount Ida College Athletic Center.
Sophomore defensive specialist Lucianna Medici (Riverside, R.I.) led the way with six aces and also had six digs in the straight set victory over non-conference foe Pine Manor, who falls to 0-3.
The Mustangs even their season record at 2-2 and will prepare for a pair of games on Saturday when they host a tri-match with Wentworth and Daniel Webster.
First year Shayna Vallauri (Morris Plains, N.J.) added nine kills of her own to lead Mount Ida, and made just one error on 15 attempts, hitting .533 for the game.
Medici served the crucial run of the first set, in which Mount Ida took a 16-13 lead and scored nine straight points to seal the victory. The run started with a pair of aces, and included kills by Reidy, Vallauri and junior Kelcey Koolman (Bedford, N.H.), before a final ace ended the game.
Freshman Ashley Whiteshield (Seward, Alaska) set up 11 points in the game for the visitors, while Destiny Mann (Orlando, Fla.) and Susan Le (Lowell, Mass.) led the Gators with four kills apiece.
The second set saw Mount Ida pull away to edges of 15-12 and 20-14, with Reidy, who had five digs in the game as well, figuring strongly in the attack. Koolman led the Mustangs with eight digs in the match and she and Chevona Markel (Torrington, Conn.) each served aces during the middle of the second set.
Mann, who had eight digs to lead the visitors, helped the Gators go on a run to bring Pine Manor back to within four at 24-20, but a service error ensured a two set lead for Mount Ida.
In the third set, Pine Manor jumped out to leads of 9-5 and 13-9, and held a two-point lead for much of the game. Sophomore Maryssa Dwyer (Quincy, Mass.) tallied five assists, all of them in the third set, and the Mustangs finaly got their noses back in front at 23-22 when an ace by Reidy broke the tie.
Pine Manor re-tied the game off a service error, but a pair of kills by Vallauri ended her strong night and delivered a Mustang victory.
Mustang senior Nicole Peixoto (New Bedford, Mass.) tallied 26 assists in the game, and had five digs, while senior Nicole Batakis (E. Longmeadow, Mass.) had four kills and two blocks in the win.
Mount Ida and Daniel Webster College will meet at 10:00 AM on Saturday morning and the Mustangs and Leopards will clash at 2:00 PM, with a neutral site game between the two visitors set for noon.
Pine Manor will travel to Mitchell on Saturday for a tri-match featuring the Mariners and Purchase State.