CALDWELL, N.J. - The Caldwell College volleyball team defeated Concordia College in three sets, 25-9, 25-16, 25-17 in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference match Thursday evening in the George R. Newman Center. The victory is the Cougars' fifth in a row and gives them a 16-11 overall record, including a 14-3 mark in the CACC. The Clippers drop to 1-23, 1-16 CACC.
Caldwell tallied 15 kills and three errors in 30 attempts for a .400 hitting percentage in the first set. Junior outside hitter Justine Pecora (Clifton, NJ/Mt. St. Dominic Acad.) notched five kills to lead the Cougars to a 25-9 win. Freshman outside hitter Susan McDonough (Saline, MI/Saline) led the way in the second set with eight kills in a 25-16 victory. As in the first two sets, Caldwell controlled play throughout the third set en route to a 25-17 win. McDonough, junior middle blocker Keesha Francois (Elkins Park, PA/Cheltenham) and senior middle blocker Ashley Collins (Cape May Courthouse, NJ/Middle Twp.) each registered four kills in the final set to help the Cougars record a hitting percentage of .357. For the match, Caldwell hit .303, marking the fourth time this season the team has hit above .300.
McDonough led the Cougars in kills for the fifth time in six matches with 14 while hitting .333. Francois finished with a hitting percentage of .438 with 10 kills, Pecora had six kills and Collins, pictured, recorded a career high with four kills. Sophomore setter Lauren Roth (Findlay, OH/Findlay) dished out 33 assists to go with four kills and six digs. Junior defensive specialist Kathleen Estes (Lyndhurst, NJ/Lyndhurst) notched four service aces, and freshman libero Maddy Amon (Shelbyville, KY/Bishop Moore) led Caldwell with 10 digs. For Concordia, Alicia Oberle and Olivia Thompson each had five kills.
Next up for the Cougars is a tri-match at the Newman Center against Wilmington University and Southern Connecticut State on Saturday, Oct. 31. Caldwell plays Wilmington at 12:00 p.m., followed by the Wildcats and SCSU at 2:00 p.m. The Cougars and the Owls wrap things up at 4:00 p.m.
CC - 25 25 25
Con - 9 16 17
