Statistics
GORHAM, Maine -- The University of New England women's volleyball team kicked off the new season by registering a 3-1 victory (25-16, 21-25, 25-20, 25-17) against Maine Maritime Academy at Hill Gymnasium on the campus of the University of Southern Maine.
It was a great opening match on the court, and I loved the energy from our bench," reflected UNE head coach Ian Blanchard. "I thought our defense was really tremendous. We put a strong emphasis on being a really good defensive team and they have responded well. Lylah Shumway was outstanding in both serve receive and defense."
UNE stacked up 89 digs on the back end, and Shumway notched 24 of them. Four other players had a double-double with digs as one of the categories --
Hannah Nowell (15),
Tess Madden (12),
Hayley Shult (10), and
Olivia Hollander (10).
Offensively, Nowell led all players with 18 kills, and Madden and
Abby Simao added 13 and nine, respectively. Hollander and Shult combined for 42 assists (22 and 20) in guiding the attack, as the Nor'easters hit at a .273 clip -- higher than all but four matches in 2025. Simao clocked in with a team-best .389 on 18 attempts.
"Hannah and Tess provided some really smart swings, and Abby and Kendall Gallaugher were excellent at the net. Olivia and Hayley kept our hitters in a good rhythm and kept MMA off balance with excellent ball distribution. Abby and Tess were particularly composed, especially for first-year players."
In the 1st set, it was knotted at 14-all when the Nor'easters (1-0) rattled off an 11-2 run -- capped by one of the seven kills by
Josie Eliot, who also registered three blocks.
After the Mariners (0-1) built a 16-11 edge in the 2nd frame and held off UNE to level the overall match, Maine Maritime raced out to a 7-0 cushion in the 3rd. But four Nowell kills over the next eight points had the Nor'easters within one (8-7). The big momentum swings continued -- UNE 9-2, MMA 6-0 -- and the Nor'easters found the deciding one (5-0) from 20-all, with the help of two late winners from
Chloe Miracle.
A 10-1 stretch in the middle of the 4th put UNE in front for good (16-8) in the set, and on the path to finishing off the match.
Sydney Williams had 16 kills and 13 digs to fuel the Mariners, while Ally Hadley turned in 25 assists, 10 digs, and seven kills. Hannah Tate totaled 21 digs.
The Nor'easters return to the scene on Saturday for dates with the host Huskies (10 a.m.) and Dean College (2 p.m.).
