WENHAM, Mass. – Lesley University junior Kaylee Deluga (Dennis, Mass.) posted her second double-double of the season but it was not enough to knock off host Gordon College as the Fighting Scots downed the Lynx 3-0 tonight at the Bennett Athletic Center. The setback drops Lesley to 2-9 in 2016 while Gordon's jumps to 9-7 on the season.
Deluga was a force up front for the Lynx with a match-high 11 kills and a .259 hitting percentage while also adding 11 digs and matching a season-high with a pair of solo blocks. Classmate Anni Abbruzzese (Croton on Hudson, N.Y.) added five kills and 11 digs while senior Vera Bednar (Helmond, Netherlands) dished out 19 assists. Fellow senior Jess Reynolds (Londonderry, N.H.) dug up 16 balls for the Lynx, matching a season-high.
Megan Hokanson (Coon Rapids, Minn.) and Jamie Tafoya (Fort Collins, Colo.) each finished with eight kills apiece while hitting .462 and .250, respectively. Mackenzie Hinds (Higganum, Conn.) added kills and a .357 percentage. Renee Cooprider (Hopkinton, Mass.) led all players with 27 assists while Maggie Risma (Hudson, Ohio) added a match-nest 17 digs.
Neither team was able to find much consistency in the opening set as both hit for a match low in a 25-18 set win for the home team.
The Gordon offense found its groove in the second set, racing out to a quick 9-3 lead before eventually building up a 16-7 advantage. The Lynx were able to close the gap to five points at 17-12, but Gordon ended the set on an 8-3 run to take a two-game advantage entering the third.
The Fighting Scots looked poised to run away with the third set, scoring the first six points of the stanza. However, a 7-0 spurt in the middle of the game, spurred on by the play of Deluga and Bednar. Gordon would fight back, retaking the lead 15-14 and never trailed again en route to a 25-19 clincher.
Lesley will return to New England Collegiate Conference play on Saturday at home at the Nicholas Athletics Center and play host to Becker College at 1:00p. Gordon has the weekend off and will welcome the University of New England next Wednesday at 7:00p.