Southern Maine Athletics

GORHAM, Maine – The University of Southern Maine Huskies' women's volleyball split a home tri-match on Saturday with a 3-1 win over the University of Maine at Fort Kent Bengals after dropping their first match to the Keene State College Owls 3-0. Sophomore Lizzy Harbester (Plympton, Mass./Silver Lake Regional) recorded a career-high 13 kills in the win against UMFK.
 
Senior Anyelis Hernandez (Lawrence, Mass.) and sophomore Reese Helisek (Halifax, Mass./Silver Lake Regional) each recorded double-doubles in the victory. Hernandez led the team in digs with 15, a new career-high, and finished second in kills with 12. Helisek posted a team-high 24 assists and logged 11 digs.
 
 
Game 1 vs. Keene State
The Records:
Keene State: 9-8 (3-2 LEC)
Southern Maine: 4-15 (0-4 LEC)
 
Series History:
Keene State and Southern Maine have now played 31 times with the Owls leading the series 25-6. Keene State has won the last seven matches in the series.
 
How it Happened:

• Keene State took the opening set 25-17 after starting the match on a 3-0 run.
• The Owls hit .308 with 13 kills in a 25-15 win in the second set after leading throughout the stanza.
• Despite a late 4-0 run by the Huskies, the Owls completed the sweep with a 25-21 win in the third set.

 
Inside the Stats:

• Keene State led 36-25 in kills, 12-5 in aces and 32-24 in assists.
• The Huskies had a 4-1 edge in blocks with three from sophomore Scarlett Squires (Mount Desert, Maine/Mount Desert Island).
• Hernandez led all players in kills with 11.
• Junior Alexis Tortola (Rowland Heights, Cali./Bishop Amat) recorded 10 assists to lead the Huskies.

 
Game 2 vs. UMFK
The Records:
UMaine Fort Kent: 1-13
Southern Maine: 5-15
 
Series History:
Today's match was the first time that Southern Maine has played UMFK since a 3-2 loss on October 22, 2022. The Huskies lead the series 15-8.
 
How it Happened:

• The Huskies cruised to a 25-14 win in the first set after starting with 5-0 run after giving up the opening point. They later used a 6-0 run to extend their lead to 17-12 in a series that featured two aces by sophomore Sophia Sardella (Westbrook, Maine). The Huskies had 10 kills and six aces in the set.
• The Bengals pulled out a 26-24 win in the second set despite the Huskies recording 18 kills.
• Southern Maine came back from a 23-20 deficit with a 6-1 run to take the third set 26-24 and go back ahead. The Bengals led by as many as five points twice in the set.
• The fourth set also ended 26-24, but after eight lead changes, the Huskies prevailed to take the match 3-1. Southern Maine fought back from set point at 24-23 with a 3-0 run to close out the match.

 
Inside the Stats:

• Southern Maine led 56-40 in kills and set a new season-high in the statistic.
• The Huskies also led 12-6 in aces thanks to four from Hernandez and three from Helisek.
• Tortola added 17 assists for the Huskies.

 
Up Next:
The next match for the Huskies will be on Wednesday, October 21 at 5:00 pm at Plymouth State University. The final home match of the regular season for the Huskies will be Senior Day on Saturday, October 31 against Vermont State University Castleton at noon.