Huge Wins over Holy Cross and UConn Give Dartmouth Invitational Title to Home Team

Saturday, September 11

Hanover, N.H.

11:00 AM

Dartmouth College

5-0,0-0Ivy League

Holy Cross

1-10,0-0Patriot

Holy Cross

Dartmouth

Photo by: Doug Austin

Huge Wins over Holy Cross and UConn Give Dartmouth Invitational Title to Home Team

9/11/2021 8:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

This is the first time the Big Green have won their home tournament since 2015

By: Charlotte Brackett

HANOVER, N.H. – Dartmouth volleyball won both of its matches on day two of its home tournament, defeating Holy Cross, 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-18) and UConn in a dramatic four-setter (26-24, 25-20, 13-25, 27-25).

This is the first time that the Big Green have won their home invite since 2015, when they only played two matches (and one of those was against UConn). Dartmouth remains undefeated through its first two tournaments, ending the weekend with a record of 6-0.

"What a great feeling to finish off with another 3-0 weekend," head coach Gilad Doron said. "Beating a very physical UConn at home was icing on the cake. All the games were very tight, and I think we fell a little flat in the third game, but we had good plays in the fourth. It was very exciting tonight and the crowd helped us make some big plays. It was good to see Ellie back playing like her usual self and Emma played amazing defense. We have a good group to battle now that they've learned to trust and feel comfortable in uncomfortable situations and that will hopefully help us for next weekend."

Dartmouth vs. Holy Cross
Amelia Gibbs was first with 13 kills, Makenzie Arent had 25 assists, and Emma Engstrom was first with 26 digs.

The beginning of the first set was close and, even though the Big Green would go on two- or three-point rallies to pull ahead, the Crusaders would close the gap soon after (10-10). Following three more ties, it was Holy Cross that took control (19-15). Dartmouth worked its way back and a 5-1 run made up of two Crusader errors, two aces by Nicole Liddle and a kill by Emma Moffet tied things up at 20-all. The Green kept it close, but it was the visitors who took set one (22-25).

Errors plagued both teams at the start of the second and before long, Holy Cross had an 11-6 edge. The Crusaders held on to their five-point lead until a 9-1 run following multiple kills by Piper Stevens, Gibbs and Liddle gave the Big Green their first advantage of the set (20-18). Tied at 22-all, kills by Moffet and Bomi Ogunlari got Dartmouth to set point (24-22), and although Holy Cross didn't make it easy, one more Moffet kill ended it (25-23).

It was all pretty even until the Crusaders got three in a row, but a huge block by Ogunlari and Moffet put a stop to that (5-3). The teams traded points until an 10-3 run for Dartmouth after kills by Liddle, Stevens, Ogunlari and Moffet and a few Holy Cross errors put the home team ahead (17-12). After going back-and-forth, three kills in a row by Gibbs and Stevens really solidified the Big Green's lead (23-16). One more kill for Liddle gave Dartmouth the 2-1 advantage (25-18).

The early parts of set four went in the Green's favor when kills by Taite Ryan and an ace by Bella Hedley made it 5-1. Dartmouth kept its momentum going but Holy Cross started to close the gap a little later on (14-11). The Big Green didn't let them get too close though and swiftly ended the match will a Ogunlari kill (25-18).

Dartmouth vs. UConn
It all came down to the two undefeated teams left standing at the end of the invite: Dartmouth and UConn.

The Big Green and the Huskies couldn't have been more evenly matched to start the match. Dartmouth spent most of the set just ahead, until a five-point UConn run near the end made things interesting. With a 24-22 edge, the visitors got two points closer to tie things up. A kill by Moffet and an error by the Huskies sent the win in the Big Green's direction (26-24).

Dartmouth trailed slightly to begin set two, but a 5-0 rally made up of two aces by Blain, a kill by Moffet and two UConn errors put the home team in front (10-7). A handful of ties later, the Huskies started to move ahead, using three straight points to take the lead at a critical point in the set (18-17). An 8-2 Dartmouth run, capped by two huge blocks by Gibbs and Stevens, wrapped the set up perfectly (25-20).

Looking to make up for lost time, the Huskies came out aggressively, winning five of the first six points in set three. UConn held on to that lead and ran with it until it had a 12-point cushion (17-5). Kills by Liddle, Blain and Stevens and a block by Stevens and Meldrum helped, but there was no slowing down the Huskies (13-25).

What started off as another set in UConn's favor soon changed sides when five straight Dartmouth points from kills by Moffet and Blain, two Huskey errors and an ace by Blain gave the home team an edge (8-7). A tie at 10-10 was followed by an 8-1 Big Green streak (kills by Blain and Gibbs, an ace by Liddle and three UConn errors) to give Dartmouth some room (18-13). The Huskies swiftly caught up and the for the rest of the set, the teams traded points and runs. A kill by Liddle broke the tie to make it a 23-22 game. Two kills for UConn and one for Dartmouth tied things at 24-24, and although an error by the Huskies got Dartmouth to match point, a kill on the other side tied the score again. A huge kill by Stevens once again made it match point and a UConn error ended the match (27-25).

Dartmouth ends tournament play next weekend at the Hartford Invitational when it plays Sacred Heart, the host, and Central Connecticut State.

Dartmouth Invitational All-Tournament
Dartmouth: Emma Engstrom, MVP
Dartmouth: Ellie Blain, All-Tournament
Dartmouth: Karen Murphy, All-Tournament
UConn: McKayla Wuensch, All-Tournament
UConn: Taylor Pannell, All-Tournament
UNH: Kelly Kaufmann, All-Tournament
Holy Cross: Skye Daval-Santos, All-Tournament