Box Score
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Senior Nancy
Shrodes continued her fine play with seven kills and only one
error
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MEDFORD -- The Tufts University Jumbos, ranked 29th in the
American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, earned a three-set
victory over the Brandeis University Judges at Cousens Gym on
Tuesday night. Tufts won by scores of 26-24, 25-22 and 25-18.
In a hard-fought battle, the Jumbos picked up their sixth
straight win to go to 6-2 for the season while the Judges suffered
just their third defeat to fall to 8-3.
The first set was the closest of the match as it saw 13 ties and
four lead changes. Tufts built a four-point advantage at 14-10
before Brandeis battled back to take a 19-17 lead. The Jumbos
tallied two straight to tie the set at 19 and then there were ties
at 20, 23 and 24 before Tufts finished the set off, 26-24.
Junior Audrey Kuan
(Los Altos, CA) started the second set strong for Tufts at the
service line, helping the Jumbos take a 4-0 lead. Brandeis stayed
resilient and came back to hold leads of 7-6, 9-7 and 12-10. The
Judges scored four straight before senior Caitlin
Updike's (Manhattan Beach, CA) kill stopped the streak. The
lead would then change hands three times before Tufts took control
of the second set.
Junior Lexi
Nicholas (San Diego, CA) gave the Jumbos a three-point lead
with back-to-back aces, but again the Judges came back to tie the
score, this time at 22. Tufts fired back with three
consecutive points to hold Brandeis off to pick up the second set
win, 25-22.
The third set began with ties at 1-1, 2-2 and 3-3. Brandeis held
just two leads during the final set, with the largest advantage
being at 10-8. Using sophomore Kendall
Lord's (LaJolla, CA) block and and a pair of aces, the Jumbos
took a 14-10 lead. There ended up being seven ties in the set as
Brandeis would not go quietly, forcing stalemates at 15-15 and
16-16. An Updike kill and senior Nancy
Shrodes' (Manhattan Beach, CA) ace help build a cushion for the
Jumbos as they scored nine of the final 11 points to take the
match, 25-18.
Updike's match-high 19 kills helped bring the Jumbos to their
sixth straight win. She also added a team-high 12 digs. Lord
added a match-high 33 assists, while Shrodes had a good night with
seven kills, one ace and just one error in 25 attempts. Nicholas
finished with three aces to her credit.
Senior Paige Blasco (Greeley, CO) led the way for the Judges
with nine kills, while sophomore Susan Sun (Acton, MA) accumulated
14 digs. Senior captain Abby Blasco (Greeley, OH) finished with 17
assists. Senior Nicole Smith (Marietta, GA) chipped in with a
team-high four blocks.
Tufts takes part in the MIT Invitational on Friday and Saturday
with opening round matches on Friday against Smith and Vassar at
home in Cousens beginning at 4:00 and 8:00 respectively. Brandeis
will play in the Amherst Classic on Friday and Saturday with a
match Friday night against the host Lord Jeffs at 6:00.
Match Statistics
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