BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. – Freshman
J'ena Baker (Rockledge, Fla.) tallied 12 kills to help the Nichols College volleyball team earn the first-ever victory in program history, a 3-0 shutout of Massachusetts Maritime Thursday night in non-conference action.
Baker – who also picked up 26 digs – posted a .300 hitting pct. for the match. Sophomore
Sabrina Boermeester (South Billerica, Mass.) added seven kills in the historic win for the Bison. Freshman
Megan Gardner (South Deerfield, Mass.) chipped in with three kills for Nichols, which also received 26 set assists and five digs from sophomore
Moriah Burns (Holland, Mass.). Senior
Monica Pucko (Gardner, Mass.) collected 14 digs and two service aces for the visitors while freshman
Jayla Simmons (Rockledge, Fla.) picked up 12 digs.
Senior Charleen Klangos (Lowell, Mass.) posted 10 kills and seven digs in the setback for the host Buccaneers, who also received six kills from sophomore Jennifer Roy (Attleboro, Mass.) to go with 10 set assists, four kills and three digs from freshman Michelle Sheehan (Attleboro, Mass.). Freshman Christina Ruggeri (Bourne, Mass.) added 14 digs for Massachusetts Maritime while freshman Marie Harrison (Weymouth, Mass.) tallied 10 digs and a pair of kills.
Nichols won the first set 25-17 behind four kills from Baker, seven assists from Burns, and seven digs from Pucko. In set two – a 25-16 win – Boermeester led the way with four kills while Baker threw down three, Burns handed out 10 assists, and Baker racked up nine digs. The Bison secured the win with a 25-17 triumph in the third set as Baker and Boermeester combined for eight kills.
The Buccaneers posted a combined hitting pct. of -.036.
All-Time Series
Tonight's matchup was the first-ever meeting between the two schools. Nichols now lead the all-time series against the Buccaneers, 1-0.
Next Match
Nichols (1-2) – Monday, September 12 vs Daniel Webster, 4:00 p.m.
Mass. Maritime (0-4) – Saturday, September 10 vs Curry, 11:00 a.m. & Bay Path, 3:00 p.m.
(contributions from Massachusetts Maritime sports information)