By Liam Reilly
@liampreilly852
SPRINGFIELD – The Springfield College women’s volleyball team took down WPI in three sets Saturday afternoon at Blake Arena. The Pride are now 12-2 on the year.
Springfield set the tone early in the set as junior Ahunna James notched the game’s first kill, followed by first-year Aubrey Hughes rising up and denying WPI’s attempt at getting on the board. The Pride didn’t skip a beat, building a 20-10 lead. Senior Jodi Saelua clinched a set one win for Springfield after delivering a kill at the feet of a group of WPI defenders.
WPI didn’t let the results of the first set hang over them, as they built an 8-4 lead early in the second set. This didn’t deter the Pride, however, as after a timeout by head coach Moira Long, James rifled a kill that helped the Pride turn the tide and lead 14-11. James has been one of the Pride’s most valuable players, scoring 119 points this season. Long noted the growth as a player and leader that James has had this season.
“She responded to ‘Hey Ahunna, you need to work on your transition’ and next play out of the timeout she got a kill,” Long said. “It’s this respond mentality that she’s having and being present in the moment.”
Springfield held on to its set two lead and won 25-20 as sophomore Alexa Bonato rocketed two kills that WPI struggled to return back.
Set three started off with multiple long points, but Springfield was able to stay strong and pounce to a 15-10 lead. The Pride then extended their lead to 23-14 after a kill from Hughes.
With the game at matchpoint, Hughes leapt up and slammed the ball into the Blake Arena floor, earning the Pride their ninth sweep of the year. Hughes spoke on her mentality heading into the final three points of the set.
“Do it for the team,” Hughes said. “We have a good mentality that it’s three points, let’s make it the fastest three points we can and end the game as quick as we can.”
Today’s win marked Springfield’s second NEWMAC conference win. Its first came against Wellesley, where the Pride rallied back from being down 2-0 and completed the reverse sweep. Springfield plays a total of 11 NEWMAC games this year.
“NEWMAC play is an opportunity to show up,” James said. “A lot of the NEWMAC teams don’t really expect us to be as good as we were last year, so right now we’re showing up to show out. Anytime we go into the gym we’re always super intentional, we’re always thinking about our core values and that’s what we’re trying to show on the court as well.”
The Pride take a trip up to Northampton to take on Smith College on Tuesday night.