Owls Lock Up First-Round Bye with Senior Night Victory

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Lauren Carnes (Westfield, Mass.) and Hanna Nihill (Chandler, Ariz.) combined for 32 kills as Westfield State secured a four-set victory over MCLA (25-12, 21-25, 25-16, 25-18) in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference match from the Woodward Center on Wednesday night.

With the win, the Owls lock up a first-round bye in the upcoming MASCAC Tournament, guaranteeing them a top two seed after improving to 6-1 in the MASCAC and 14-9 overall. The Trailblazers, who were tied with the Owls entering tonight's match, fall to 5-2 in the conference and 15-7 on the season.

Prior to the start of tonight's match, Westfield State honored their seven seniors: Allie Hill, Hanna Nihill, Emily Washkalavitch, Emma Nihill, Morgan Dority, Isabelle McElhiney, and Siobhan Meyer. With both sides ready for play, Meyer, who is out due to injury, delivered a ceremonial first service to kick off the action.

The Owls senior class had their fingerprints all over the match. Hanna Nihill recorded 15 kills while Emma Nihill (Chandler, Ariz.) reached double figure kills with 11. Morgan Dority (Walpole, Mass.) set another career high in assists by tallying 50 helpers to shoulder the facilitating role once again for the Owls.

Emily Washkalavitch (Oxford, Penn.) connected for four service aces while Allie Hill (St. Clair Shores, Mich.) ended the match with an ace that was perfectly placed into the back right corner of the Trailblazers end.

Carnes has been a featured player for the Owls since returning from injury, leading Westfield in kills in all three matches, finishing with 17 tonight. The MASCAC Offensive Player of the Week was sharp again, tallying a .467 kill percentage while compiling back-to-back slams to send the Owls to a set three win.

With the fourth set tied at 11, Westfield connected for five of the next six points with Carnes adding consecutive kills for a 16-12 lead. Later in the set, Washkalavitch launched home an ace to push the lead to six points, then Carnes moved the contest to match point with a kill. The ensuing serve from Hill would fall on the Blazers side to seal the win.

Audrey Melson (Champlin, Minn.) and Kaelynn Greeley (Corona, Calif.) each registered 13 kills for MCLA while Elizabeth Brown (Lee, Mass.) followed with 12 kills. Addison Decaro (Eagle River, Ark.) had 23 assists and Madison Maloof (Amsterdam, N.Y.) chipped in 13 digs.

Westfield State has two matches remaining in the regular season as the Owls will step outside conference play to face Wellesley on the road on Saturday at noon.