Box Score BOX SCORE
When and Where: November 13, 2015 – Pleasantville, N.Y. (Goldstein Fitness Center)
Score: Southern New Hampshire University 3, Pace University 0 (25-17, 25-13, 25-22)
Records: SNHU 12-13 (7-6 Northeast-10), Pace 14-18 (6-7 Northeast-10)
Senior Nina McGouldrick (Richardson, Texas) posted a match-high 12 kills Friday evening to lead the Southern New Hampshire University volleyball team to a 3-0 triumph against Pace University, which clinched the Penmen a berth in the Northeast-10 Championship for the second consecutive season.
McGouldrick hit an efficient .345, while also tallying seven digs and a block. Classmate Catherine Cotton (Murphy, Texas) notched a double-double by handing out a match-best 36 assists and saving 12 digs. Cotton also collected a pair of service aces and three kills. Fellow senior Maeghan Higgins (Hesperia, Calif.) amassed a whopping 30 digs and scored a pair of service aces.
Pace jumped out to an 8-5 lead early in set No. 1 before Southern New Hampshire eventually rallied back to go up 9-8. The Penmen were in front, 15-14, when a 4-0 run – capped by a Cotton service ace – stretched the advantage to 19-14. Pace rattled off two straight points to attempt to climb back in it, but SNHU closed the set with a 6-1 surge, which included two kills each from McGouldrick and sophomore Victoria Wehrmann (Dallas, Texas), to go up 1-0 in the match.
The Setters again built an early edge, going on top 3-1 before an 11-1 rush by the Penmen gave the visitors a commanding 12-4 advantage. Two kills from sophomore Marisa Coronis (Hudson, N.H.) and a pair of Higgins service aces powered the stretch. Two McGouldrick kills highlighted a 6-1 run that moved the Penmen lead to 21-8 before a 4-1 counter-run pulled Pace within 10. SNHU sealed the set, however, by earning three of the final four points.
The third set was even at 7-all when the Penmen ran off four straight points to craft an 11-7 lead. The margin was four when McGouldrick contributed three kills during a 6-1 run that widened the gap to 20-12. The Setters roared back with a 7-2 run that pulled them within 22-19 and then nudged to within 24-22, but a kill from freshman Holly Adams (Hopkinton, Mass.) gave the Penmen the victory.
Coronis tallied nine kills on the strength of .296 hitting, while Wehrmann posted five kills and five digs. Sophomore Kathleen Schurman (Burnt Hills, N.Y.) registered 10 digs and junior Megan Salamun (Scottsdale, Ariz.) added six kills and four digs.
Notes:
- The Penmen clinch their second straight Northeast-10 postseason berth and the fourth overall in the program's history.
-Southern New Hampshire can finish as high as the fifth seed and as low as the eighth seed.
-Higgins' 30 digs, combined with the Penmen earning at least one more match with the postseason berth, puts Higgins in a great position to break the program's all-time digs record of 1,628. She needs just 22 more digs over the final two guaranteed matches to re-write the record book.
-Cotton's double-double is her 12th of the season.
What's Next:
The Penmen wrap up the regular season Saturday, Nov. 14 (1 p.m.) when they travel to take on Northeast-10 unbeaten, Adelphi University.
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