BOSTON, Mass. – In their regular season finale Saturday morning, the Wentworth Institute of Technology women's volleyball team (21-5, 8-0 CCC) battled past Suffolk (15-13, 4-4 CCC) in four sets behind a match-high 20 finishes from freshman Emma Sanders (Mount Pleasant, S.C.). 

With the win, the Leopards complete the regular season 8-0 in conference play, locking themselves into the top seed as the best regular season team across the Commonwealth Coast Conference. Their 21 wins in the 2023 season are already their most wins in a single season since 2019 (22 wins), while their 13-match win streak is two wins away from matching the program-best 15-win mark set in the 2018 campaign.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Wentworth set out to a 3-1 lead in the first set thanks to kills by freshman Kate McLane (Columbus, Ohio), Sanders, and graduate student Riley Waggoner (Simi Valley, Calif.). The Leopards continued the lead to 7-6 with two kills by McLane before another two by McLane and one apiece for Sanders and Waggoner pushed the advantage to 15-9. A kill by sophomore Riley Schoonmaker (Montgomery, N.Y.) continued the lead to 18-11 before kills by Waggoner and Sanders helped fend off the Rams in a 25-20 set win.
• The two teams kept things tight for most of the second set, with the Leopards taking an initial 6-4 lead on a Sanders kill. Suffolk regained the lead, holding a 9-7 edge, before kills by Schoonmaker and senior Shelby Seage (Cocoa, Fla.) gave Wentworth an 11-9 lead. After gaining a 23-19 lead mostly on errors, the Rams came back to take a 24-23 lead. Two kills by McLane gave the Leopards a 25-24 edge before Suffolk battled back to grab a 27-25 set win, tying the match at one-all.
• Three kills by Sanders helped Wentworth to a 4-0 lead to start the third set before a kill by junior Ema Thompson (Lewiston, Idaho) marked a 7-3 lead. Two kills by McLane and another by Waggoner stretched the advantage to 12-4 before two kills, one apiece by Sanders and Waggoner, pushed the lead to 16-5. Two kills by Thompson sandwiching a kill by Schoonmaker raised the lead to 22-9 before Suffolk marched back with eight straight points to cut the deficit to 22-17. Two kills by McLane helped Wentworth hold on for a 25-17 set win and a 2-1 match lead.
• The Leopards got out to a 5-1 lead in the fourth set with help from kills by Sanders and McLane before two service aces by McLane pushed the advantage to 7-1. A kill by Schoonmaker continued the lead to 11-5 before a kill by Waggoner and service ace by Seage raised the score to 15-7. A kill by Waggoner marked an 18-8 advantage before two kills by Sanders and another by Waggoner brought the tally to 22-11. Kills by Schoonmaker and Thompson gave the Leopards a 25-14 set win and a 3-1 match lead.

SERIES NOTES:

• The Leopards own the all-time series, 15-6, with their last loss to the Rams dating back to 2005.

NEXT UP:

• As the number one seed in the CCC Tournament, Wentworth receives a bye through the first round and will host an opponent to be determined in the CCC Semifinals on Thursday, November 9.

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