NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The Lasell University women's volleyball team dropped a 3-0 non-conference match at Smith College Tuesday evening at Ainsworth Gymnasium, falling by set scores of 25-15, 25-23 and 25-20.

Smith hit at a .253 attack percentage as a team, while holding Lasell to an .035 percentage. With the win, the Pioneers improve to 11-5 on the season, while the Lasers drop to 6-5.

Freshman Kinsey Cronin (Medford, Minn.) led the winners with 10 kills and five blocks, while freshman Sarah Dankovich (El Paso, Texas) added eight kills and first-year Fiona Hegarty (Tustun, Calif.) was good for seven winners. Junior Ava Zollinger (Orlando, Fla.) was also strong at the net with six blocks.

The Lasers were led by freshman Mckenna McCool (Loomis, Calif.), who had seven kills, and classmate Camila Lopez (Barquisimeto, Venezuela), who tallied five kills and five digs. Freshman Madalyn Scully (Mauston, Wis.) had four kills on seven attempts (.571)

Smith took an early 3-0 lead in the opening set and surged to an 10-4 advantage. Lasell was within four points at 13-9 but the Pioneers pulled away to claim the set, 25-15.

The second set went back and forth early on, with a 6-6 tie. Lasell stayed within striking distance and came from behind to tie the score at 16-all and again at 21-apiece. Smith got back-to-back points from Cronin (kill) and Dankovich (ace) to pull ahead and held on for the 25-23 victory in the second set.

The teams traded leads early in the third set before Smith took the lead for good, but the Lasers stayed within 2-4 points. But the night belonged to the Pioneers, who went on to a 25-20 verdict to clinch the match.

Lasell returns home for a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tri-match on Saturday at the Athletic Center, hosting Colby-Sawyer College at 11 a.m. and the University of Saint Joseph (Connecticut) at 3 p.m. Smith hosts Salve Regina University Friday at 7 p.m.

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