PRIDE RETURN TO NECC CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 3-2 COMEBACK WIN OVER NEWBURY

BENNINGTON, Vt. – In a thrilling five-set women's volleyball match, No. 2 Regis College came back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat No. 3 Newbury College in a New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) semifinal bout at the Mountaineer Athletic Center on the campus of Southern Vermont College Friday night.

The Pride won with set scores of 18-25, 10-25, 25-23, 25-15, and 15-11.

Regis (13-17) will now take on the No. 1-seeded Southern Vermont College Mountaineers who also made it back for a rematch of 2012's NECC Championship with a 3-0 win over Daniel Webster College in the evening's first semifinal. Newbury finishes the season with a 14-15 overall record.

RC junior outside hitter Jackie Silver (West Hills, Calif.) tied a match-high of 11 kills with NC freshman-standout Courtney Banks (Corona, Calif.). Silver added three service aces and three digs while Banks led the Nighthawks with 19 digs.

Newbury came in looking to avenge its 3-1 loss to Regis in last year's semifinal, coming out strong to take the first two sets. Freshman Gabriela Aldaco (Springdale, Ark.) led the Nighthawks with five kills in the opening frame while seven players pitched in defensively with digs, paced by Banks with five. Regis hurt itself with nine attacking errors as the Pride dropped the first by a 25-18 margin.

Carrying the momentum, Newbury continued to hit efficiently as the Nighthawks posted a .296 hitting percentage in its second-set victory. Banks was huge as she put down 10 kills in the game with Aldaco adding another five. The Pride attack was still looking for its spark as they only had two kills in the 25-10 set loss.

The tables would turn quickly, however, as the Nighthawks started committing a slew of attack errors in the third set, opening the door for Regis to get back in it. With the Pride holding a comfortable 16-7 lead, Newbury refused to go away. RC moved its advantage to 22-16 before the Nighthawks built the suspense with a five-point run to close in to just one. Regis junior Sam Bliss (Framingham, Mass.) then put down two of the three Regis kills through the next five points to end it with the narrow 25-23 victory.

Regis came out in the fourth with a hunger for a fifth set, going up 9-1 quickly and seeing the decisive game in its future. Newbury would chip away throughout the fourth, but never had the run needed to put the frame in jeopardy for the Pride as they kept working until the 25-15 win.

The final set was a back-and-forth with Newbury holding a lead in the early going. With the Nighthawks up 10-7, Regis was able to work back, partly in thanks to NC hitting errors, until a Silver kill ended the night and put the Pride back in the title match.

In addition to Silver's performance, Regis freshman Kristina del Rey (Miami, Fla.) and senior captain Vanessa Noesi (Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic) added eight kills apiece while Bliss finished with seven to go along with 15 digs. Senior libero Sara Gold (N. Hollywood, Calif.) was all over the floor for the Pride, recording a match-high 33 digs on the night. Junior setter Marilia Ramos (Chimbote, Peru) assisted on 26 of the 29 Regis kills.

Aldaco ended the match on Banks' heels with 10 kills for the Nighthawks while also pitching in with 15 digs. Freshman Madison Clemmons(Riverside, Calif.) notched a match-high 32 assists, adding four service aces and eight digs. Newbury was strong defensively as a team, posting 83 digs to the Pride's 65.

Release courtesy of Southern Vermont College Sports Information