QUINCY, Mass.—The William Smith College volleyball team split action this afternoon, falling to nationally recognized Eastern Nazarene College, 3-1, and defeating Western New England University 3-0. The Herons move to 2-1 on the season, while the Lions move to 2-0 and the Golden Bears fall to 0-3.
 
Sophomore Malya Sayre led the Herons, recording 29 kills between the two matches. Junior Elaina Wamhoff posted 57 assists between the two contests. Sayre and Wamhoff were named to the All-Tournament team.

  
MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (Eastern Nazarene):

• William Smith came out strong in the first set but was matched by a strong serving team in the Lions. The Herons were down 24-23 before going on a 3-0 run to grab the first set 26-24. Sayre posted two kills in the last three points.
• Both teams stepped up on the offensive side in the second set with William Smith outhitting Eastern Nazarene .229 to .172. The two teams would trade points, but the set would ultimately go to the Lions, 25-23.
• Eastern Nazarene showed its skill from the service line in the third set, serving seven aces to lead it to a 25-15 set three win.
• After a 5-0 start to the set for the Lions, both teams traded points in the fourth set as the Herons put down 11 kills compared to the Lions nine. William Smith went on a late 5-0 run after two kills from sophomore Marin Montagne and two service aces from first-year Maysie Malinaric. The Herons comeback fell just short as Eastern Nazarene closed out the set 25-20, and the match 3-1.

Match stats:

• Sayre led the Herons with 17 kills (.143), followed by Montagne with 10 (.172), and sophomore Jaylynn McCarthy with seven (.091).
• Wamhoff recorded 29 assists, eight digs, five kills (.154), two blocks and one service ace.
• McCarthy led the Herons with 11 digs, while Montagne and Malinaric both chipped in nine.

Match 2 (Western New England):

• William Smith came out strong in the second match of the day, outhitting Western New England .257 to .032. The Herons would use six kills from Sayre in the first set to take a 25-19 win in set one.
• The Heron defense turned up the heat in the second set, keeping the Golden Bears to a negative hitting percentage in the set (-.038). William Smith put down 13 kills, including four from McCarthy to grab a 25-17 win in set two.
• William Smith continued to shine on both sides of the ball in the third set, hitting .216 as a team and keeping Western New England to a negative hitting percentage (-.033) in its second consecutive set. The momentum stayed with the Herons throughout the entire set as William Smith closed out the match with a demanding 25-14 win in set three. Montagne recorded four kills in the last four points of the match for the Herons.

Match stats:

• Sayre led William Smith again in match two with 12 kills, hitting .212 on the match. Montagne (.263) and McCarthy (.316) added nine kills each.
• Wamhoff recorded 28 assists, while adding five kills (.133), five digs, one block and one service ace.
• Malinaric led the Herons defense with 15 digs. McCarthy added nine while Montagne chipped in seven.
• First-year Lindsay Umlauf and McCarthy led the Herons with two blocks each, while Wamhoff and first-year Maren Hunt added one each.  

 
COACHES CORNER:
 
"Today was an awesome learning experience for us as a group," Head Coach Derryk Williams said. We struggled against a strong serving team this morning in Eastern Nazarene. I asked my team for an improvement in our style of volleyball in the second match and they responded! We are a young group that's at our best when playing free. We will work to continue to create our identity and play fearless moving forward."

 
UP NEXT:
 
William Smith will be back in action next weekend when it welcomes Theil College, Hartwick College and SUNY Brockport to Bristol Gymnasium for the 2023 William Smith Tournament. The Herons will take on Hartwick on Friday, Sept. 8 at 7 p.m. to open tournament play.