WENHAM, Mass.—Gordon Women's Volleyball fell 3-0 to the hands of NESCAC stalwart Bowdoin on Friday night at the Bennett Athletic Center. The Fighting Scots battled in each set, but the Polar Bears offense found a consistent groove as the night went on to complete the straight-set win.
Gordon dips below .500 at 6-7 and has their three-match win streak snapped. The will have a quick turnaround as they host Commonwealth Coast Conference foe Wentworth at 11 a.m. tomorrow morning. Bowdoin improves to 6-3 on the year after breaking out of a two-match skid on Wednesday against Bates. The Polar Bears travel southward to take on Tufts tomorrow at 2 p.m. in Medford.
The Fighting Scots played inspired in the first set knowing the stiff test they were up against in Bowdoin. Gordon won several key point early and turned in a 15-11 lead entering the home stretch of the opening game.
However, a Bowdoin timeout with the Polar Bears down four seemed to change the entire trajectory of the match. Bowdoin won four quick points to tie the game and then continued its consistent attack thereafter, beating Gordon in a 14-3 race to the finish of the set for a 25-18 result.
The two teams continued to stay close well into the second set where the Polar Bears held a slim 14-13 edge at the midway point. As in the first set, Bowdoin turned on the jets with a six to nothing run to take a firm seven-point lead near the end of the set. The Polar Bears were spurred by underclassmen Caroline Flaharty (Fort Myers, Fla.) and Sydney Salle (Chadds Ford, Pa.) during the stretch.
Gordon was able to close the gap to 20-15, but the Polar Bears won the final five points to take a two-set advantage.
The Fighting Scots hung around for most of the third set, but the Polar Bears seemed to pick all the right spots in big moments to keep a healthy lead, before ultimately closing things out 25-17.
For the Foes:
- · Flaharty, a first-year, led the Polar Bears on the attack as she has all season. The rookie finished with 13 kills to only three errors and contributed eight digs on defense.
- · Salle had a flawless night with 10 kills and no mishits to put up 12.5 points on the evening. She also contributed 2.5 total blocks.
- · Libero Katie Doherty (Menlo Park, Calif.) had a game-high 30 digs.
- · Senior Quincy Leach (Durham, N.C.) served up 35 assists to pace the Polar Bear attack.
- · Bowdoin committed a season-low seven attack errors on the night, tying the mark they set in a 3-0 win over Bates on Wednesday. The Polar Bears hit .282 for the match.
For the Scots:
- · Carleigh Petersen (North Hills, Calif.) was the only Scot in double-figures with 10 kills and 12 total points.
- · Maggie Risma (Hudson, Ohio) led the team with 19 digs, while Kristen Cooprider (Hopkinton, Mass.) contributed 14 digs.
- · Renee Cooprider (Hopkinton, Mass.) had 24 assists.
- · Gordon held a 5-1 advantage in service aces, but also had seven service errors.
