BRUNSWICK, Me. - In a tri-match versus Bowdoin and Bates on Saturday afternoon, the Emerson women's volleyball team came away with a split in non-conference action at Morrell Gymnasium. In the first match, Emerson took the 3-2 five-set victory over Bates. In the second matchup against host Bowdoin, Emerson was swept in three straight sets. 

Emerson improves to 15-8 overall, while Bowdoin moves to 11-5 and Bates falls to 6-13. 

MATCH ONE: Emerson 3, Bates 2

Senior Jules Augustine (Skaneateles, N.Y.) registered 14 kills and four aces to hit for an explosive .702 for Emerson as the Lions took down Bates 3-2 in five sets. 

A perfect seven for seven in kills lifted Emerson to a 25-16 first set triumph over Bates. The Bobcats initially took the 7-5 lead, but allowed the Lions to pull ahead 12-8 on a 7-1 run. Bates tied Emerson at 12-all before the Lions powered out 13 consecutive points that included two Augustine kills and five aces from junior Sam Harton (Cartersville, Ga.) to take the win. 

Bates battled back in the second frame and evened the match at 1-all after a 25-22 win. The Lions took a 6-3 lead and soon found themselves down 14-8 after two kills from senior Chandler McGrath (Seal Beach, Calif.). Emerson came within one of Bates twice before they squared the set at 20-all, but McGrath tallied a pair of kills to lock up the second frame win. 

The closest Bates would come to Emerson was three in the third frame as the Lions took the third set, 25-18, Emerson jumped out to an early 8-1 lead and cruised to a nine point cushion at 21-12 after a string of three Bates attack errors. An ace from the hands of freshman Bella Edwards (Palisades, Calif.) capped off four Lions points to take the 2-1 match lead. 

However, Bates squared the match at 2-all after fighting off Emerson for a 25-22 fourth set victory. After Emerson lost the 10-6 lead, the Lions squared the match up 12-all on a kill from junior Halley Dewey (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.), but that would be the closest the Lions would come to regaining the lead. Bates went up five at 21-16 before Emerson got within two at 24-22, but it was a Lions error that sent the match to five sets. 

Bates carried its momentum from the fourth frame into the fifth and opened with a 6-5 lead, but Emerson answered with nine points of their own to gain the 12-8 advantage. The remainder of the set saw six lead changes between Emerson and Bates before Edwards' ace capped off the 20-18 win and 3-2 match victory.

Harton led the Lions with a team-high eight aces, while sophomore Moira Brennan (Glenview, Ill.) recorded 33 helpers and senior Amanda Linzmeyer (Huntington Beach, Calif.) recorded 10 kills and five aces. Along with Augustine, sophomore Fara Cohen (Morristown, N.J.) had four aces. Edwards recorded five aces and six kills and sophomore Kelley Guerra (Randolph, N.J.) registered one block. 

McGrath led Bates with a team-high 11 kills on 21 swings, while junior Jacqueline Forney (Bloomington, Ind.) had 22 assists and eight digs. Freshman Gabi Eustache (New York, N.Y.) had a match-high nine aces and freshman Taylor Stafford-Smith (Calabasas, Calif.) led the Bobcats defense with three blocks. 

MATCH TWO: Bowdoin 3, Emerson 0

Bowdoin opened up the first set with a 7-2 lead over Emerson and did not let it go despite threats from the Lions. After the Polar Bears grabbed the 13-8 lead, the Lions pieced together three points to come within two at 13-11, but the Polar Bears jumped to the five point lead at 16-11 on a Lions attack error. Emerson threatened again and got within three on a kill by Linzmeyer at 17-14 and would put three more points on the board before Bowdoin capped off the 25-17 first frame win on a Lions attack error. 

Much like the first frame, Bowdoin jumped out to an early lead over Emerson and made sure to not salvage it. After the Polar Bears grabbed the 5-2 lead, the Lions came within one at 5-4, which is the closest they would come to the Polar Bears. Bowdoin continued to build onto their lead and went up nine points on Emerson at 21-12 before they tallied four more points to ease their way to a 10 point 25-15 second frame win. 

Emerson gained its first opening lead of the match at 8-6 after Edwards notched a kill, but the Lions watched the Polar Bears quickly put the lead back in their favor on five points to gain the 11-9 advantage. The score differential between Emerson and Bowdoin never ventured more than two as the Lions notched two late points to come within one at 18-17. Emerson would tally one more point as Bowdoin put up seven more points on the board as a kill from Erika Sklaver wrapped up the 25-18 third set victory and 3-0 sweep. 

Harton paced Emerson with a team-high 10 digs, while Brennan had 18 helpers and an ace. Edwards followed with eight kills and an ace as Linzmeyer led the Lions defense with three blocks. 

Freshman Caroline Flaharty (Fort Myers, Fla.) notched a double-double with 14 kills and 14 digs, while senior Katie Doherty (Menlo Park, Calif.) had a team-high 22 digs and senior Quincy Leech (Durham, S.C.) recorded 41 helpers. Sophomore Sydney Salle (Chadds Ford, Pa.) led the Bowdoin defense with four blocks.

Emerson and Bates both return to home action on Tuesday, while Bowdoin continues action on Friday. The Lions return home to host Coast Guard at 7:00 p.m. and Bates will host Maine Maritime at 7:00 p.m. as well. Bowdoin heads to Washington-St. Louis for a tri-match against Texas-Dallas and Millikin starting at 5:00 p.m.