Volleyball Notches First Win of the Season

Head Coach Brett Pettis earned his first collegiate victory

Fitchburg, Mass. – The Fitchburg State women's volleyball team scored their first win of the season with a thrilling 3-1 win over the Bulldogs of Dean College tonight in non-conference action at the Parkinson Gymnasium.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 3, Dean College (25-22, 26-24, 22-25, 25-21)
Records: Fitchburg State (1-1) | Dean College (0-2)

How It Happened

Notched 14-14 in the first set, the Falcons reeled off an 8-2 run capped off by a pair of service winners from senior Amy Coelho (Bellingham, Mass.). Dean cut the deficit to 24-22 with a pair of kills from Anabella Driscoll (Plymouth, Mass.) and Emily Larouche (Agawam, Mass.) until a defensive miscue secured the Falcons 25-22 final.

In the second set the Green and Gold grabbed an 11-3 edge to start the set, backboned by the serve of sophomore Emily Gelinas (Westfield, Mass.). Dean would cut the lead to 15-13 with a service ace from Driscoll, however the Falcons would take the set 26-24 with an ace from Coelho.

Trailing 19-12 in the third set, the hosts rebounded off pair of kills from Alissa Olmsted (Ashby, Mass.) and Leah Sheehan (Billerica, Mass.) and stellar service from Perry Joubert (Seekonk, Mass.) to give the Falcons a 20-19 lead. However, Dean responded with a kill from Emily Ball (Feeding Hills, Mass.) for a 25-22 win.

Fitchburg State opened the fourth set with a 4-0 lead and never looked back. First year Sariah Dyer (Raynham, Mass.) posted a pair of kills to push the lead to 20-14. After a timeout by Dean, senior Jillian Laabs (Dudley, Mass.) had a pair of kills en route to the 25-21 final.

Inside the Numbers

• Joubert had a team-high 17 assists, while Gelinas chipped in with 15 helpers
• Dyer led both teams with 11 kills, and Lauren Riccardi (Tewksbury, Mass.) had 8 kills and 5 blocks.
• Driscoll had a game-high 25 assists for Dean, while Larouche and Sari Albury each had 9 kills
• Head Coach Brett Pettis earned his first collegiate victory

 Up Next

Falcons will host Curry College on Tuesday night at 6:00 PM.