GNAC WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL

WINTHROP, Mass. – No. 2 seed Regis will host No. 4 seed Lasell in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Volleyball Championship on Saturday, Nov. 11 after both teams were victorious in their semifinal matchups on Thursday (Nov. 9) evening. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.

The Pride were able to hold serve at home, sweeping No. 6 seed Saint Joseph's (Maine) 3-0. The Lasers earned their GNAC Championship berth on the road, taking a 3-1 win over top-seeded Simmons in their semifinal matchup.

This matchup is a brand new one for the conference crown as both squads are making their first-ever appearances in the GNAC Championship match.

During the regular season the Pride had the edge over the Lasers, winning their conference match, 3-1.

The winner of the Saturday's Championship match will be named the 2023 GNAC Women's Volleyball Champion and earn the league's automatic qualifier into the 2023 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship.

#2 Regis 3, #6 Saint Joseph's (Maine)

Recap courtesy of the Regis Athletic Communications Department.

WESTON, Mass. – Second seed Regis College defeated sixth seed Saint Joseph's College, 3-0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-23), Thursday night in a semifinal match of the 2023 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Volleyball Tournament at Higgins Court. 

With the victory, Regis advances to the championship match of the tournament Saturday, Nov. 11. Thanks to Lasell's 3-1 victory over top seed Simmons, the Pride will host the fourth seeded Lasers in the title contest starting at 1 p.m. at Higgins Court. 

Kate Montigny led the Pride offensively with nine kills on a .500 hitting percentage, while Regis' other five main hitters all finished with five kills apiece. Two of those hitters, Kamdyn Tenorio and Avery Mola, paced the team defensively with 11 digs apiece, with Mola also leading Regis with four service aces, and Ahnasia Mckinney adding 18 assists and nine digs. 

In the first set, Regis opened a 6-3 lead before kills by Nadia Sixto and Kailyn Chamberlin pulled the Monks within one point. The Pride responded with an 11-3 scoring run, led by Mola and Rita Dow with two service aces apiece. Regis would clinch the first set on a solo block by Montigny. 

Thanks to three consecutive kills by Maggie Sylvester, Saint Joseph's College took an early 6-2 lead in the second set. After back-to-back kills by Mola later in the set, Sylvester again hit three kills in a row to extend the Monk lead to 18-12.  

Two service aces by Mola helped close the Pride deficit to 18-16, but Saint Joseph's College increased its lead back to four at 20-16 on a service ace by Allison McMullen he Pride would rally back thanks to a 9-2 scoring run that closed out the second set, with the final two points coming on a block by Montigny and Grace Fabiano and a kill by Mola. 

The Pride took their momentum into the third set, scoring the first five points and eventually opening a 10-4 lead on consecutive service aces by Toni Ondris. The Monks battled back with five straight points, led by two kills from Ava Brownsword, but Regis put together an 11-4 scoring run to extend its lead back to eight points at 22-14. 

Saint Joseph's College did not give up, going on a 9-2 scoring run, including four straight points on opportunities for Regis to close out the match. Montigny finally clinched the set and the match for the Pride with her ninth and final kill of the night. 

Victoria Briones led the Monks with 11 kills, while Sylvester finished with eight kills. McMullen led her team at the service line with three aces, and Abby Jerome paced the Monk defense with a match-high 15 digs. 

Regis College (26-7) improves its school-record win total and will appear in the GNAC title match for the first time since joining the league in 2017. The Pride defeated Lasell, 3-1, on Oct. 25.  

#4 Lasell 3, #1 Simmons 1

Recap courtesy of the Lasell Athletic Communications Department.

BOSTON - The Lasell women's volleyball team continued a historic season by defeating topped rank Simmons in four sets by a final score of 22-25, 25-16, 25-13, 25-23. The win moves the Lasers record to 26-4 on the season, while the Sharks are now 22-8. The Sharks had gone 15-0 in GNAC play during the regular season.

It was a back and forth first set, but the Lasers held the lead for most of it. They seemingly took control with a 5-0 run late to make it 21-17, but the Sharks had other ideas, and went on a 7-0 run to take a lead. The two teams would trade the last two points, giving the Sharks a 25-22 set win.

The second set began no different, back and forth the teams went. The Sharks held a 12-9 lead, but the Lasers would go on a 7-0 run that featured six Shark errors to take the 16-12 lead. The Lasers did not look back from there, and cruised to a 25-16 set win, taking it on a McKenna McCool kill.

The third set told a similar story to the second, as the Sharks grabbed an early lead at 7-5. But after things became tied at nine, the Lasers utilized a 4-0 run that featured kills from Juliana Medini, Emily VanHouten, and Tori Scambray. After the Sharks got a point back, the Lasers went on a 10-1 run, which once again was helped by six Shark errors. The Lasers would close out the set for a 25-13 set win.

The fourth set saw the Lasers get out to the early lead, jumping ahead 10-4. The teams would trade some points before the Sharks went on a 7-2 run to close the gap to one at 17-16. After a Lasell point, the Sharks seemingly grabbed momentum with a 6-0 run to take a 22-18 set lead, and were primed to force a fifth set. But the Lasers remained composed, and answered with a 6-0 run of their own to grab a 24-22 lead. After an attacking error from McCool made it 24-23, she redeemed herself by clinching the match with a kill, giving the Lasers the fourth set 25-23, and the match 3-1.

It was a four-headed attack from the Lasers, as McCool and Medini each had 10 kills, while VanHouten and Kyra Paris each had 9. Running the offense was Sydney Katz, collecting 26 set assists. It was a well-rounded performance on defense as well, led by Maddie Caro's 22 digs. Dating back to the 2006 season, Caro's 22 digs are the second most in school history in a playoff game, trailing only herself, when she posted 25 in a playoff game against Elms last year. Katz and McCool each had 11 digs, giving each of them a double-double. VanHouten added nine digs herself. The Lasers were also stellar at the net, totaling 22 blocks, with Medini having seven and VanHouten with six.

This will be the first GNAC championship match for the women's volleyball program. They last played in a conference final in 2006, when they played in the NAC Championship.

2023 GNAC Women's Volleyball Tournament Schedule

Play-In – Monday, Nov. 6
(Hosted by higher seeds)

#7 Emmanuel def. #10 Colby-Sawyer, 3-2 | BOX
#9 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) def. #8 New England College, 3-2 | BOX

Quarterfinals – Tuesday, Nov. 7
(Hosted by higher seeds)

#1 Simmons def. #9 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.), 3-0 | BOX
#2 Regis def. #7 Emmanuel, 3-0 | BOX
#6 Saint Joseph's (Maine) def #3 Johnson & Wales, 3-2 | BOX
#4 Lasell def. #5 Rivier, 3-0 | BOX

Semifinals – Thursday, Nov. 9
(Hosted by higher seeds)

#4 Lasell def. #1 Simmons, 3-1 | BOX
#2 Regis def #6 Saint Joseph's (Maine), 3-0 | BOX

Championship – Saturday, Nov. 11

#4 Lasell at #2 Regis, 1 p.m.

ABOUT THE GREAT NORTHEAST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 16 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.

Stay up to date with all the latest news from the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC)!
'Follow' us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram, and 'Like' us on Facebook!

-#TheGNAC-