United States Coast Guard Academy - Department of Athletics - Volleyball - Bears Win Record 17th Straight; Advance to NEWMAC Semifinals

NEW LONDON, CONN.--Sophomore Nicole Gurr had a game-high 17 kills as top-seeded Coast Guard won its school record 17th straight beating eighth-seeded Babson 3-0 (30-14, 30-12, 30-20) in the first round of the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Volleyball Tournament.

Coast Guard scored 16 of the final 20 points in game one turning a 14-10 lead into a 30-14 win and then jumped out to a 15-2 lead in game two and cruised to a 30-12 win before closing out the match 30-20 in game three.

Junior co-captain Corinne McCormack had 12 kills, a game-high 16 digs and four blocks, senior co-captain Christine Rostowfske led the way with 37 assists and junior Anne Staley had a game-high four aces for the Bears, who are the top ranked team in the NCAA regional poll.

Junior Carlen Palau led Babson (8-17) with six kills while sophomore Ryan DePaoli led the Beavers with 15 digs.

Coast Guard (21-2) will now host the semifinals and the championship of the NEWMAC Tournament on Friday and Saturday. The Bears will take on fourth-seeded Wellesley (a 3-0 winner over Smith) at 5 p.m on Friday while third-seeded Springfield (a 3-0 winner over Clark) will take on second-seeded MIT (a 3-0 winner over Mount Holyoke) in the second semifinal at 7:30 p.m. The championship match will be played on Saturday at 4 p.m.

The Bears remaining matches in the NEWMAC Tournament will be broadcast live on the internet at www.sportsjuice.com