NORTH ANDOVER, MA – The Merrimack volleyball team improved
to 6-0 in the Northeast-10 with a 3-2 win over UMass Lowell
Wednesday night, that featured a come-from-behind fifth set
rally.
Game scores were 21-25, 25-13, 25-17, 23-25, 15-12.
Merrimack trailed 12-8 in the fifth but scored the final seven
points to silence the River Hawks’ chance for an upset.
Ale Kuncaitis (Canton, MA) closed the match out
with a kill and had three of the final seven points.
Molly Cindric (Westlake Village, CA) led the way
for Merrimack with 29 digs, 22 kills, three service aces, three
assists, and two blocking assists. She was errorless through her
first 15 kills and 13 digs, and finished with just five attack
errors and hit .298 overall.
The Warriors came out flat, losing the first 25-21, while
committing eight errors. Trailing 10-7 in the second, they scored
12 unanswered points, behind the serving of Elyse Lorenz
(Frankfort, IL) to take the second set 25-13. They cruised
to a 25-17 third set win and seemed primed to close it out in four
until the River Hawks rallied late to take a 20-18 lead after tie
scores at 16, 17, and 18. Lowell won the fourth 25-23, taking the
momentum into the fifth.
After Merrimack scored the first four points in the fifth, Lowell
responded with 12 of the next 16, led by Sarah Coscia and Elsa
LeGrand. But Merrimack, behind the serving of Megan Murray
(Rancho Santa Margarita, CA), stormed back, using kills
from Cindric, Kuncaitis, Kristin Applegate (Hampstead,
NH) and even from setter Lorenz to win the match with
seven straight points.
The Warriors have won a school record 12 straight conference
matches at home dating back to the beginning of the 2007 season.
Only Merrimack and New Haven remain unbeaten in the conference,
with the two teams matching up on November 4 at 7 p.m. in North
Andover.
Kuncaitis posted a double-double of 16 kills and 12 digs, while
Lorenz tallied 58 assists, 10 digs, four aces, and two kills.
Alyssa Pickert (Tinley Park, IL) was outstanding
defensively, totaling 33 digs. Lisa Barr (Alberta,
Canada) added 16 kills, while Murray tallied nine.
The Warriors (11-7, 6-0 NE-10) visit Southern Connecticut Friday
(7 p.m.) and Pace Saturday (1 p.m.).