Volleyball Rally Falls Short in 3-2 Setback to Westfield State

By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The longest Bridgewater State University volleyball winning streak since 2015 came to an end on Saturday afternoon.

The Bears' comeback bid against Westfield State University fell short, and they were edged by the Owls, 3-2, in a showdown for first place in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference at the Tinsley Center.

Westfield State took the first two sets, 25-17 and 25-16, before BSU rallied to win, 28-26 and 25-22. The Owls prevailed in the deciding set, 15-10.

The Bears had won eight consecutive games with their last loss coming on Sept. 14 against the University of New England.

BSU is 9-7 and 4-1 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference while first-place Westfield State is 11-11 and 4-0 in the conference.

Sophomore Lily Welch (Hanson, Mass.) had 22 digs, 15 kills and five block assists for the Bears.

Senior Bethany Votta (Cumberland, R.I.) had 29 assists and 12 digs. Votta recently became the 10th player in program history to record 1,000 career assists.

Sophomore Ava Crane (Dartmouth, Mass.) added 31 digs and 12 kills while sophomore Xin Ai Robinson (Kaiserslautern, Germany) added 17 assists and 12 digs.

Sophomore Lilly Misay (New Bedford, Mass.) added 12 digs.

The Owls and Bears were tied, 5-5, early in the opening set and Westfield State held a 10-8 lead before moving in front, 18-14, and never trailed again.

In the second set, a kill by Crane made it 7-7, but Westfield State opened a 16-9 advantage and the Bears were unable to get any closer than six.

BSU fell behind, 13-5, in the third set but got within 15-12 on an attack error.

Four straight kills by Welch tied it at 24 and a kill by sophomore Alexis Starks (Milford, Mass.) gave the Bears a 25-24 lead. Kills by Kim Gowell (Durham, N.H.) and Crane finished the set and kept the Beas alive.

BSU opened the fourth set with an 8-2 lead and was ahead 11-4 before the Owls pulled even at 13.

Trailing 20-16, the Bears outscored Westfield State, 9-2, the rest of the way with a Crane kill forcing the fifth set.

Westfield State raced to a 10-3 lead, but the Bears cut the deficit to 10-7 and trailed, 13-10, but they were not able to complete the rally.

BSU will be on the road Wednesday for a 6 p.m. match against the Mass. College of Liberal Arts.

Westfield State has Senior Day on Wednesday when it hosts the Mass. Maritime Academy.