November 6, 2009
Game Time: Eagles Aim For First NECC Championship Saturday

The Eagles will be bidding Saturday for not only their first title, but the first team championship ever won on Daniel Webster College soil. (Gil Talbot photo).

Nashua - Two to go for a title.

The Daniel Webster women’s volleyball team’s quest for the first conference championship in program history comes to head Saturday as the top-seeded Eagles open the NECC semifinal round hosting fourth-seeded Elms College at 11:00 a.m. at the Mario Vagge Gymnasium.

A victory ushers the Eagles into Saturday’s championship tilt at 3:00 p.m. The second semifinal pits second-seeded Newbury College against third-seed and defending tourney champion Lesley University at 1:00 p.m.

The Eagles are also bidding to become be just the second program in College history to win a NCAA-affiliated conference championship and first to ever be won on College soil. The Eagles men’s cross country team won the NECC title in 2008 while the men’s ice hockey team won a NECHA division championship in 2007.

A brief synopsis of each of the final four teams follows.

Under the guidance of second year Head Coach Braden Zamore, the Eagles (14-6) are once again enjoying their best season in program history, having tied records for wins in a season (14), notched the most wins in a conference (7), and won their second straight regular season crown - this one outright after sharing the title last season with Lesley. The squad went 8-1 over their final nine matches.

Still one of the youngest teams in the league, the Eagles sport just one senior and two juniors. Leading the charge is two-time NECC Player of the Week Kristina Rieger and five-time Rookie of the Week Chelsey Crawford. Rieger leads the squad with 1.21 aces per outing (81 total), and is third in kills (1.66) and second in digs (2.16)

Crawford, meanwhile has been the NECC’s top offensive player through the season with a league best .328 hitting percentage and 2.55 kills per game. Crawford is also the Eagles top net presence with 48 total blocks.

Third year head coach Jamie Terenzi has performed a remarkable turnaround with second-seeded Newbury. The Nighthawks struggled to a 3-27 overall record last season (2-5 NECC) but have improved remarkably to 12-19 this season and finished 5-2 in league play, good for second place. Sara Hanna leads the team with 2.15 k/pg and is hitting .111 overall, while Tricia Correveau adds 1.66 k/pg and also hits .111.

Third-seeded Lesley (14-12) posted a sweep of Becker College in the NECC quarterfinals behind 10 kills from Lindsey Marek and seven from Megan Ortwein while Amanda McCracken had four blocks. After a 4-11 start, third year head coach Elizabeth Morris’ Lynx come into the final four winners of 10 of their final 11 with their only loss coming to Daniel Webster. Marek leads the team in kills per game (2.28), and total blocks (44) while McCracken is hitting a team best .290 with 2.23 kills per game.

Second year coach Sheila Gisbrecht’s fourth-seeded Elms club (9-19) earned its way into the final four with a 3-1 win over Mitchell in the quarterfinals. Christina Martin’s 12 kills led a 50-kill team attack on the night while Jen Rego and Stacy Croteau added nine each. Winners of six of their final seven, the Blazers’ only loss in that stretch was to Lesley. Croteau leads the squad with 2.20 kills per game and 58 total aces.