Box Score The fourth-seeded women's volleyball team defeated fifth-seeded University of Saint Joseph by a score of 3-0 in the quarterfinals of Great Northeast Athletic Conference Championship at the Wildcat Center on Tuesday evening. Johnson & Wales opened with a 27-25 win in game one for the 1-0 advantage. The Wildcats extended their lead to 2-0 with a commanding 25-10 win in the second set and wrapped up the shutout with a 25-15 victory in the third and deciding set.
Johnson & Wales was led by junior Paula Cadavid (Pawtucket, R.I.) who notched a double-double with 12 kills and 17 digs while junior Marissa Bunnewith (Millbury, Mass.) tallied nine kills and three digs for the Wildcats. Junior Kellen Tensen (New Canaan, C.T.) notched 31 set assists and eight digs while senior Kaitlin Kuntz (Boone, Iowa) had eight digs in the victory.
Junior Tiffany Mapusaga (Waianae, Hawaii) paced Saint Joseph with seven kills and 13 digs while senior Megan Williams (Lakeville, Conn.) tallied a double-double with 15 set assists and 13 digs in the loss for the Blue Jays.
In the first set, the two teams battled back and forth with neither team leading by more than three points. With the score tied 25-25, JWU recorded the next two points, capitalizing on an attacking error by Saint Joseph to close out the 27-25 win and take the 1-0 advantage for the contest.
The second set had Johnson & Wales race out to an early 14-6 lead after a kill by junior Tai Heath (Clinton, Md.) forced a time out from the Blue Jays. The Wildcats never looked back as they cruised to the 25-10 for a 2-0 lead.
In the third and deciding set, it was more back and forth action with JWU holding just an 11-9 lead after an attacking error. The Wildcats then used an 11-3 run, capped by a block from senior Alyssa Drapeau (Biddeford, Maine) and senior Lauren Cordts (Amherst, N.H.) for the 20-12 lead. JWU controlled the action the rest of the way and used the 25-15 win in the set to secure the 3-0 shutout victory.
With the win Johnson & Wales improves to 16-15 while the University of Saint Joseph falls to 16-7 on the season. The Wildcats will travel to No. 1 seed Emmanuel for semifinals of the GNAC Championship on Thursday, November 6th at 7:00 p.m.
