Volleyball Swept at Worcester State in Final Regular Season Match

WORCESTER, Mass.— The MCLA Volleyball team saw its 11-match winning streak come to an end tonight falling to Worcester State 3-0 in both team's regular season finale. With the result, the Lancers clinched the #2 seed in next week's postseason conference tournament while the Trailblazers will enter the tourney as the #3 seed.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Saturday, November 4, 2023

• Score: MCLA 0, Worcester State 3
• Records: MCLA Trailblazers 19-4 (MASCAC 5-2) | Worcester State Lancers 13-14 (MASCAC 6-1)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• MCLA got off to a slow start in the opening set finding themselves down quickly 7-1, forcing an early Trailblazer timeout. But Worcester State did not relent and were never challenged cruising to a decisive 25-9 first set win.
• The Trailblazers regrouped to begin the second and following a modest three-point service run by Ezmeralda Albright led 8-5. But an 8-0 run would put the hosts back on top 13-8 and they ultimately stretched the lead to 21-12. Though it appeared as though the set would soon be over, MCLA chipped away and fought off a set point to make it 24-23. After it had appeared the Trailblazers had pulled even, the call on the floor was reversed and the Lancers had won the set.
• MCLA trailed for much of the third but stayed within striking distance ultimately catching Worcester and taking a 16-15 lead. The Lancers promptly regained the lead, but the Trailblazers caught them again at 18-18. MCLA erased a 3-point deficit to even the score at 23-23 and fought off a pair of match points before ultimately succumbing 28-26, giving Worcester State the sweep.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Anais Badio led MCLA with 7 kills while Chloie Garber finished with 6 kills and five digs.
• Elizabeth Brown finished with 4 kills and seven digs. Shannon O'Brien led the Trailblazers with 11 assists.
• Worcester State's Beatrice Gamboa-Estrella finished with a game-high 8 kills, while teammate Camryn Burgioled led all players with 17 digs.

UP NEXT:

• #3 MCLA will host the #6 seed on Tuesday at 6pm in the opening round of the 2023 MASCAC Volleyball Championship Tournament.  #2 seed Worcester State will host a yet to be determined opponent on Thursday in semifinal play.