Rivera's 49 Assists Powers Pride to 3-2 Victory

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Pride took a break from Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play with a midweek matchup against the Golden Bears of Western New England University, where Alexandra Rivera's 49 assists (Bristol, Conn.) facilitated the Pride to a 3-2 victory over the Golden Bears to improve to 14-12 overall.

Grace Fabiano (Cheshire, Conn.) and Eva Catalanotto (Cheshire, Conn.) led the Pride offensively with 14 and 13 kills, respectively. Fabiano also added five blocks, while the offense was orchestrated by Alexandra Rivera (Bristol, Conn.), who turned in a dominant performance with a career-high 49 assists. Defensively, Bella Karpicz (Berkley, Mass.) joined Fabiano at the net with five blocks apiece, and Isabella Seccareccio (Medford, Mass.) anchored the back row with a game-high 20 digs.

For the Golden Bears, Lea Barber led the way with 13 kills and 14 digs, while Rachel Critz added 12 kills and four blocks.

How it Happened

A pair of Karpicz kills put the Pride ahead 4-0 early, a slim lead they held until WNE took its first advantage at 9-8 after three unanswered points. However, back-to-back service aces from Sophia Anderson  (Wakefield, Mass.) helped Regis reclaim the lead, which they extended to 16-12. From there, the set featured tight play with three ties and two lead changes. A 6-0 run pushed the Pride ahead 24-22, but the Golden Bears battled back to even the score at 24-all before three unanswered points secured them the 27-25 opening-set victory.

After falling behind 5-0 early, the Pride responded with a 5-0 run of their own - highlighted by a pair of Karpicz aces - to take an 8-6 lead. They maintained control throughout the set, extending their advantage to as many as six after a Catalanotto ace and a Golden Bears error made it 15-9 in favor of the Pride. WNE managed to cut the deficit to four later in the frame, but that was as close as they would get, as a trio of Avery Mola (Cheshire, Conn.) kills sealed the 25-18 set-two victory to even the match at one apiece.

A Fabiano kill followed by a WNE error gave the Pride their first lead of the set at 12-11; however, it was short-lived, as the Golden Bears used a 4-1 run to regain a two-point advantage. From there, WNE maintained control. Karpicz briefly halted their momentum with a kill to make it 23-18, but it wasn't enough, as the home team closed out the set 25-20 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Regis took control midway through the set with seven unanswered points—powered by five kills—to grab a 17-14 advantage. A Golden Bears kill briefly slowed their momentum, but the Pride quickly surged again, highlighted by back-to-back blocks from the duo of Karpicz and Fabiano to make it 23-15. Regis carried that energy through to a 25-16 set-four victory, forcing a decisive fifth set.

The duo of Karpicz and Fabiano continued to set the tone in the decisive fifth set, as a block by the pair gave the Pride an early 4-1 lead. The set featured four ties and three lead changes before Regis pulled even at 10-all. From there, the Pride closed in dominant fashion, scoring five unanswered points- fueled by a pair of Mola kills - to secure the five-set victory over the Golden Bears.

Inside the Numbers

• With a dominant 49-assist night, Alexandra Rivera set a new career high and a new program record for assists in a single game.
• Isabella Seccareccio's 20 digs marks a career-high for the junior. 
• This evening's 3-2 victory over WNE marked the first in program history against the Golden Bears. The series, which dates back to 2007, has featured six meetings between the two programs.

Up Next

The Pride will travel to Connecticut on Saturday, November 1, for a tri-match against the host Albertus Magnus Falcons and the Colby-Sawyer Chargers, with games scheduled for 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.