Box Score Philadelphia, Pa. - (9/17/2015) – Tonight's match opposite Goldey-Beacom College was a new beginning for the Chestnut Hill College women's volleyball team, who rolled to a 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-17) sweep in their home and Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) opener, their first victory of the season. The Griffins hit .325 (35K-9E-80TA) for their third-highest single-game total since joining the conference and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II, snapping a nine-game skid in style.
 
There was no place like Sorgenti Arena for Chestnut Hill College (1-9, 1-0), which tested itself against an unforgiving non-conference schedule before joining the CACC fray. The scarlet and gold shook off some early cobwebs, negating a 12-11 first-set deficit with a lightning-quick 6-1 spurt that turned the match in their favor for good. Junior middle hitter Emily Koehler (Bath, Pa.), freshman setter Kennedy Sutton (Chesapeake, Va.) and senior outside hitter Rachel Biro (Nazareth, Pa.) jump-started the sequence with consecutive kills, and even though Goldey-Beacom College (3-5, 0-2) got within 17-15, the Griffins never wavered. Back-to-back kills by sophomore middle hitter Melissa Shunk (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) restored order, and junior libero Regina Trabosh (Norristown, Pa.) put the finishing touches on a 25-17 decision with one of the team's 11 aces.
 
Chestnut Hill College kept its foot off the gas in the second set, storming out to a 10-3 advantage before the Lightning struck back with a four-point surge to make it an 11-9 margin. With the Griffins on top, 15-10, senior defensive specialist Meghan Chiovitti (Brighton, Colo.) served up a six-point sequence, notching a trio of aces to support two kills from junior outside hitter Madison McBride (Long Beach, Calif.) and a Goldey-Beacom College attack error, 21-10. Biro delivered the home side a 2-0 edge with consecutive kills to close the set, 25-12. The Griffins connected to the tune of a .455 attack percentage in the frame (12K-2E-22TA).
 
Some early back-and-forth in the third set eventually gave way to a Griffin avalanche. Leading just 11-10, McBride's kill facilitated a remarkable stretch of 10 straight points on the serve of Trabosh, handing Chestnut Hill College a commanding 22-10 bulge. The Lightning countered with a 6-0 spurt of their own, but a service error stopped the momentum, and another McBride kill preceded a match-ending error for the visitors.
 
Senior middle hitter Innocent Early (Newark, N.J.) paced Goldey-Beacom College with eight kills, while freshman setter Olivia Florence (Glen Allen, Va.) distributed 22 assists.
 
Biro's 10 kills led all players, but it was McBride and Koehler who proved most efficient on attack. Each finished with eight kills against only one error, combining for a .467 hitting percentage (16K-2E-30TA), and McBride hustled to a team-high 11 digs. Koehler was a force at the net, providing 5.5 points' worth of blocks (four solo, three assist). Shunk contributed five kills on just six attacks, while Sutton dished out 27 assists in addition to seven digs. Sophomore defensive specialist Peyton Reno (Wilmington, Del.) had 10 digs, Trabosh finished with nine digs and three aces, and Chivotti produced a career-best four aces to supplement six digs.
 
The Griffins look to build on Thursday's impressive performance and establish a winning streak when they visit Felician College for a 1:00 p.m. match on Saturday, September 19. 

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