Women's Volleyball Returns to Conference Play Tuesday vs. Saint Michael's (7:30 p.m.)
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NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – After ending last week with an out-of-conference match, the Merrimack College women's volleyball team returns to Northeast-10 Conference play on Tuesday night when the Warriors host Saint Michael's College from Hammel Court at 7:30 p.m.
The Basics
Date/Time: 9/29 | 7:30 p.m.
Records: Merrimack (4-6, 0-1 NE-10) | Saint Michael's (6-4, 0-1 NE-10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
Last Time Out:
The Warriors defeated the Southern New Hampshire Penmen in five sets, 3-2, on Thursday night in non-conference play. Merrimack and SNHU played a marathon third set, with the Penmen escaping with a 33-31 victory to take a 2-1 lead in the match, but the Navy and Gold battled back to win the final two frames and take the contest.
Junior outside hitter Jennifer Cain (Melrose, Mass.) finished with a team-high 19 kills on 58 attacks. She also collected 15 digs for her second double-double of the season. Classmate Tara Stuhr (Huntington Beach, Calif.) dished out a career-high 60 assists and registered 10 digs to also register a double-double. She now has doubled up six times in 10 matches.
Senior captain Madison Burke (San Jose, Calif.) notched 36 digs from the libero position, leading the team and falling one dig shy of her season high. Sophomore Christina Nye (Plaistow, N.H.) posted a career night with career highs in kills (14) and digs (25).
Cain leads the team in kills per set (2.77), while junior Juliette McCall (Torrance, Calif.) ranks atop the squad in total kills (90). Stuhr's performance last week moved her into five in the NE-10 in assists per set (9.22). Burke's 5.06 digs per frame ranks seventh in the league.
Earlier This Season vs. Saint Michael's:
The Warriors and Purple Knights met in the season opener for both squads in a non-conference match. Freshman Sofia Basauri (Beaverton, Ore.) registered 18 kills and 14 digs, both of which are still her season highs.
Burke led four Warriors in double figures with 19 digs. Stuhr finished with 48 helpers, while McCall and Nye combined for 25 kills as the Warriors defeated the Purple Knights in four sets, 3-1.
The Purple Knights:
- Saint Michael's arrives in North Andover with a 6-4 record, losing its only conference match against SNHU. The Purple Knights split two matches over the weekend at a tri-match hosted by Keene State
- Senior middle hitter Candace Washington ranks second in the league with 1.29 blocks per set. Junior libero Natalie Moore leads the league with 6.31 digs per frame
- Offensively, senior Kelsey Flaherty boasts 3.08 kills per frame and Washington smacks down 2.47 per set. Junior setter Catie Weller registers nearly eight assists per frame
Up Next
Merrimack travels to a tri-match this weekend at Southern Connecticut, where the Navy and Gold play a league match against the Owls and then a non-conference affair against the University of Bridgeport. Bridgeport made the NCAA Tournament out of the East Coast Conference last season.
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