GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA – Pratt improved to 8-0 with a 3-0 (25-17, 27-25, 25-19) win over host Gwynedd Mercy before suffering its first loss to Wells College (25-15, 25-19, 25-15) Saturday at the GMU tri-match in non-conference women's volleyball play.
Reigning HVIAC Player of the Week Alice Vicente led Pratt with 18 kills and 21 digs in the win, and setter Alli Houghton totaled 43 assists over two matches as the Cannoneers moved to 8-1 on the season. Sophomore middle hitter Charlotte Burch led the team with attack percentages of .500 against GMU and .389 against Wells.
With the Cannoneers clinging to a 19-17 lead in Game 1 against Gwynedd Mercy, two Diana Lezama kills sparked a game-ending 6-0 run with Abby Nagy at serve. Vicente totaled five kills in the set, with Lezama adding three in the 25-17 win.
The second set marked the tightest set of the day and first taste of overtime for Pratt this season. The Cannoneers fended off numerous Gryphons leads in a set that saw 13 ties, the final tie coming at 25-25.
Back-to-back Vicente kills from Houghton tied the set at 14-14, and a Burch solo block retied it at 16-16 and forced a Mercy timeout, after which a pair of Vicente kills followed in giving Pratt an 18-16 lead. The Gryphons responded with a 4-0 run with Brianna Greer serving, taking a 20-18 lead, eventually going ahead by three and looking poised to tie the match at 1-1.
With the game hanging in the balance, kills from middle hitter Hannah Calderwood twice trimmed three-point GMU leads to two, the second of which was followed by two Gryphons errors that gave Pratt new life at 23-23. After keeping the Cannoneers alive at the net, Calderwood provided the biggest serve of the match, an ace that gave Pratt a 25-24 lead. Mercy held off set point to re-tie the contest at 25-25, but a Greer attack error followed by a Vicente kill closed out a thrilling, come-from-behind 27-25 win.
The Cannoneers held off a trio of Gryphons runs and sailed away late much as the team did in the opening set in Game 3. A Mercy service error and four attack errors handed Pratt an early 9-5 lead, and a Lezama ace and Vicente kill led to a Gryphons timeout during a 5-0 run in which Pratt took a 14-8 lead.
Mercy runs of 4-0, 3-0, and 4-0, respectively, swung the lead in the home team's favor at 19-17, but the Cannoneers attack was the difference that ultimately ended the match in three sets. Kills from Lezama, Vicente and two from Burch ignited a 8-0 run, turning the two-point deficit into Pratt's eighth win in as many tries, ending the match on a 25-17 Game 3 win.
Vicente led all players with 18 kills and 21 digs, hitting .333, while Burch added six kills with only one error on 10 tries for a match-high .500 attack percentage. Houghton's 26 assists were a match-best for the HVIAC's assists leader, setting up the Cannoneers offense that hit a splendid .244. Pratt's defense, meanwhile, held Mercy to 22 kills and 22 errors for a .000 attack.
Against Wells College, a Game 1 6-0 run featuring two Lezama kills and two Vicente aces sent Pratt in front 8-5. A 9-0 Express run opened up a 16-9 Wells lead, and a Vicente kills cut the margin to 19-13, as much of a comeback as Pratt would muster in the Express 25-15 win.
Two kills each from Wells' Jessi Aki and Vashti Nettles sent the Express out to an 8-4 lead in Game 2. Back-to-back kills from Vicente fueled a 4-0 run that brought Pratt to within 11-10, forcing a Wells timeout. An Anuhea Leite-Ah Yo ace extended the Express lead to 16-12, and a pair of Wells kills closed out a 25-19 second set victory.
An Aki kills and a bad set from Houghton forced a Pratt timeout trailing 10-4 in Game 3, but a 6-1 Pratt run on the strength of kills from Calderwood and Lezama pulled the Cannoneers to within 11-10. Two Eliza Schwab service aces in a 4-0 run followed in sending Wells ahead 15-10, and Pratt came to within 17-13 on a Vicente kill and Wells attack error, but that was as close as the Cannoneers came in the Express 25-15 win.
Vicente led Pratt with 10 kills and 16 digs, and Houghton totaled a double-double of 17 assists and 11 digs. Burch added eight kills on 18 attempts with only one error, again leading the team with a .389 attack percentage, but Pratt hit only .117 as a team and allowed Wells to hit .300 in the Cannoneers first loss of 2014.
Pratt returns to play Sunday with another tri-match, taking on host College of St. Elizabeth and King's (NY) College.
