Newton, Mass.-Danielle Drapeau (Biddeford, ME) produced 17 kills for the Lasell College Lasers as they ran away with a 3-0 victory over Suffolk University in women's volleyball action on Tuesday evening. The Lasers finished the night with a 10-21 overall record and a 5-6 GNAC record, while Suffolk drops to 6-23 overall and 3-9 in the conference.
Lasell took control immediately during the first three points in set one before the Rams came back to tie everything up at three-all. At that point, Lasell found renewed energy and produced a significant edge over Suffolk. However, the pesky Rams pursued a comeback and were able to tie it up a second time, at 13-13. The Lasers returned the favor with a streak of their own and allowed the Rams to score only three more points in the set for a final game score of 25-16.
Carrying over the momentum from the first set, Lasell pulled away with an early advantage in game two. Drapeau was a force at the net for Lasell, putting away kill-after-kill on offense, while freshman middle Elizabeth Nichols (Southington, Conn.) roamed the net on defense for three solo blocks. Lasell produced a quick 25-12 victory in the second set.
Suffolk earned their first lead of the match in the third set after receiving a side out on the initial serve. The Rams kept themselves close to the Lasers and were able to inch their way into another late lead during the final points, at 22-21. However, the Lasers were able to put away the match in three sets with a service ace by Nichols and a final kill by Drapeau.
Drapeau led all the athletes with her .366 attack percentage. Nichols was next in total kills for Lasell, contributing six to the match.
Lasell's sophomore setter Meghan Crozier (Ballston Spa, NY) dished out 20 assists, adding two aces and seven digs. Defensive pro Amanda Major (Southbury, Conn.) came away with her fifth 30-plus dig performance of the season, averaging 10 per set in the contest.
For the visiting Rams, setter Julie Sullivan (Haverhill, Mass.) played well throughout the contest, putting up 17 balls for her front line to attack. Melissa Griffin (Byfield, Mass.) produced the most offensive kills for Suffolk, with eight in the match and senior defensive specialist Kelsey Armstrong-Hann (Corvallis, OR) picked up 20 digs.
Lasell has one regular season match left this season which will be played on Saturday, October 31st in the Athletic Center. The Lasers will face off against GNAC defending champions Rivier College, at 10:00 a.m.