Owls Downed by Coast Guard

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Coast Guard sophomore Shannon Shaw (Torrance, Calif.) recorded a game-high 14 kills as the Bears defeated Westfield State in four sets (25-19, 25-18, 19-25, 25-17) on a Thursday night from Roland Gymnasium in New London, Conn.

The Owls, who were playing back-to-back games after defeating conference foe Salem State yesterday, drop to 5-9 overall after the non-conference match. Coast Guard improves to 12-4 on the season.

The opening set was tightly contested as consecutive kills by Sarah Bingham (Reno, Nev.) and Shawna Crowley (Billerica, Mass.) cut the Bears lead to a single point, 18-17. However, Coast Guard gained momentum in the final third of the set, scoring seven of the final nine points, which was finished off by an Elizabeth Atkinson (Brookline, N.H.) kill.

In the second set, senior Noelle Tursky (Fort Myers, Fla.) capped the frame with a kill and service ace to put Coast Guard in control of the match, leading two sets to none.

The Owls clawed back in the third set, tying the game with a team block by Bingham and Ashley Crowley (Billerica, Mass.). Westfield moved forward by scoring ten of the remaining 14 points, including three straight points in the form of a Julia Bartiet (Cheshire, Conn.) kill, a service ace by Allie Hill (St. Clair Shores, Mich.) and a solo block from Bingham to close the set.

The Owls would hang around in set four until a pair of aces by Allie Wildsmith (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) stretched the Bears lead to seven (19-12). Westfield would be unable to close the gap, falling in four sets to conclude the match.

Westfield had a balanced scoring attack on the night with eight different Owls totaling a kill. Shawna Crowley paced the team with eight of the team's 37 kills. Hill finished the match with 20 digs, and Julia Dangel-Garcia (Ashland, Mass.) and Morgan Dority (Walpole, Mass.) each compiled 12 assists.

Westfield State will return to action next Thursday as the Owls will host Rhode Island College in a non-conference match from the Woodward Center in Westfield, Mass.