By Liam Reilly
@liampreilly852
Springfield College women’s volleyball took care of business against Wheaton College in a 3-0 victory on Tuesday, Sept. 19 at Blake Arena.
The win moves Springfield to 11-1 (1-0) while Wheaton drops to 7-2 (0-1).
The Pride and the Lyons battled in their first set, including five ties. Wheaton began to break away with a 23-18 lead until Maeve Voltz was subbed back in and immediately made an impact. Voltz had two blocks and a kill – helping the Pride win the first set 26-24.
Two weeks ago Voltz was named the NEWMAC defensive player of the week after putting up 16 blocks and 19 kills.
“Wanting to get defensive player of the week again has put a fire under me, so that’s been motivating me to work harder,” Voltz said.
Voltz currently has the second most blocks in the nation, and has played a big part in the Pride’s success to start the year.
Springfield coach Moira Long spoke on the impact Voltz had on the game.
“It was great to have her offense come alive to have 10 kills, but her blocking has been outstanding,” Long said.
After a nail-biting first set, the Pride went on to win the second set 25-14 and the final set 25-12. Long credited the dominant play in the final two sets to the team playing more intensely.
“We let them hang around,” Long said. “They did a good job coming out and being aggressive and we were still settling in. They were passing and transitioning slowly on their side, so we needed to make the adjustment that our offense needs to be faster. In set two and three we definitely did a better job with that.”
Long finds the win was due in part to the Pride’s consistency.
“Everyone being ready and doing their role plays a big part,” Long said. “We’ve had to mix and match a little bit, everybody’s had an opportunity to get in. When people stepped on the court they’ve done a really good job.”
Springfield will travel to Cambridge on Saturday to take on MIT at 11 a.m.
Photo Courtesy of Springfield College Athletics