Liam Gambon
The Framingham State Rams dropped both games of a doubleheader when they traveled to Rhode Island on Saturday, Sept. 15 to face Rhode Island and Salve Regina colleges.
The Rams lost their first match against Rhode Island College by a score of 3-1. Three of the four sets ended in single-digit deficits.
RIC won the first set 25-21, then followed up with a 25-20 win. The Rams fired back with a win of their own in the third set, winning 25-18. RIC ultimately closed out the fourth set with a dominant 25-11 win.
For the Rams, Brandee Thomas led the Rams with a team-best 12 kills. Grace Caughey added eight kills and 13 digs to her match while, Brandey Rodriguez followed her with seven kills of her own and three digs. Alyssa Cafarelli recorded 13 digs, and Mackenzie Whalen contributed 29 assists to go along with her eight digs.
In the second match of the day, the Rams were swept in three sets by Salve Regina.
The first set ended with a score of 25-17, while the second ended 25-10 and the third and final set ended 25-11.
The Rams were heavily outpaced in hitting percentage. The Seahawks had a .225 hitting percentage while the Rams had a lowly .032 hitting percentage. The Seahawks also added in 11 aces on the day to Framingham’s one.
The Rams were led in kills by Thomas and Rodriguez, who both accumulated five.
Whalen recorded 17 set assists and seven digs, while Caarelli added in 15 defensive digs.
The Rams’ next matchup came at Fitchburg State against the Falcons on Tuesday Sept. 18.
Framingham swept their conference rivals in this match three sets to none.
In the first set, the Rams came out @ring. Framingham outscored Fitchburg 25-5, backed by an astounding .522 hitting percentage. The second set was closer ending with a 25-16 victory for the Rams, followed by a 25-14 game-sealing win in the third set.
The Thomas/Rodriguez duo once again led the Rams’ attack with eleven kills each. Rodriguez’s eleven kills were backed by a solid .625 attack percentage.
Whalen added a game-high 28 assists to go along with eight digs. Deidre Fay held down the fort as she recorded 14 digs. Julia Barry also contributed nine on the day.
The Rams out-dug the Falcons 50-26, and out-aced them with nine aces to Fitchburg’s five.
The key to the dominant victory was the Rams’ stellar .305 hitting percentage compared to the Falcons’ .093 hitting percentage.
The win moves the Rams to 6-5 on the season.