The Spartans split in their final tri-match of the season, hosting UMass Boston and SUNY Cobleskill for their annual Dig Pink games. The Spartans fell to the Beacons and bounced back against the Fighting Tigers, taking the thrilling five-set victory.
Hailey Martinovich led the Spartans offensively with 32 kills on the day, chipping in 15 digs, and hitting an impressive .429 in match two. Alondra Rojas notched her first career triple-double in match two of the day, combining for 60 assists on the day, 14 kills, and six service aces.
UMass Boston 3, VTSU Castleton 0
Martinovich and Jocelyn Ray led the Spartans with seven kills. Rojas dished out 18 assists, contributing 12 kills, one block, and one service ace. Victoria Garcia led the Spartans defensively with 14 digs.
The Beacons took control of set one, jumping to an 8-2 lead before Garcia served up an ace to get the Spartans back on the board. The Beacons stayed ahead for the rest of the first set, going up 20-12 before Martinovich notched her second kill of the day. The Beacons continued to string along points, taking set one 25-15.
The Spartans took their first lead of the day in set two, up 5-4 before the Beacons strung along points in groups of three. The Spartans tied the set at 17 apiece, trading points back and forth until the Beacons went on a 6-0 run to lead 24-19. Addie Blomgren notched the set-winning kill to take set two 25-20 for the Beacons.
The Beacons led 16-9 in set three before the Spartans started battling their way back. Kills from Kaitlyn Chapman and Ray gave the Spartans a momentum boost, but the Beacon's offense could not be stopped, finishing set three with six more kills to take the set 25-15, and the match 3-0.
VSTU Castleton 3, SUNY Cobleskill 2
Martinovich led the Spartans offense with a career-high 25 kills, chipping in 12 digs and one block. Rojas notched her first career triple-double with 42 assists, 14 digs, 10 kills, chipping in five service aces.
Set one was back-and-forth with neither team pulling away by more than three points. The Fighting Tigers scored three straight points to take the set 25-23. In set two, the Spartans fought back from a seven-point deficit and tied the set at 19-19. Neither team could pull ahead to end the set, with the Spartans tying the set at 25 points apiece to force extra points. Martinovich notched two kills, and Rojas contributed one to give the Spartans set two 28-26.
The Spartans came out hot in set three, leading 20-10 before the Fighting Tigers tried to claw back. Rojas and Martinovich once again ended set three for the Spartans with three straight points to take the set 25-15. The Fighting Tigers did not quit, leading 17-8 in the fourth set before kills from Martinovich and Rojas and a block from Sheehan put the Spartans within four. The Fighting Tigers did not let up, taking set four 25-19, forcing the deciding fifth set.
The Spartans jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead in set five before the Fighting Tigers took a timeout to regroup. Out of the timeout, the Fighting Tigers scored the next two points, before Martinovich answered with two kills to put the Spartans up 8-3 and force the side change. The Fighting Tigers scored four straight points to reach within one before Martinovich scored two kills, and Lillirose Prevost contributed a service ace to put the Spartans up 12-7. Ray and Rojas blocked the final offensive attempt by the Fighting Tigers to take set five 15-11 and the match 3-2.
The Spartans head to Southern Maine on Saturday, November 9 for the final game of the season at 12 p.m.
