NEW LONDON, Conn. –

Going into the day, Coast Guard had played 24 matches this season and not had any go to five sets. That all changed today, with a roller-coaster five set classic vs Emerson College, with whom they came into the day tied in the standings. Ultimately, in a performance in which they showed supreme grit all the way through, the Bears came out victorious 3-2(21-25, 25-15, 19-25, 25-20, 15-13). 

Prior to today's match, Coast Guard honored their four volleyball seniors: Vickie Mancine(Chicago, IL), Laila Baameur(Bakersfield, CA), Sarah Somer(Cary, NC), and Mack Boose(Camden, NC). "I'm so proud of what these four have accomplished over the past four years". said head coach Mark Thomas. "Their hard work, support, and leadership have set a phenomenal tone for the culture of our program moving forward."

This senior class has an impressive resume. In their four years, the team has a record of 72-36, and they have made the NEWMAC tournament in each season of their career. 

Coach Thomas continued, "I can't thank these four enough for everything they've given to Coast Guard Volleyball. I wish them all the best in their future endeavors and can't wait to see where their futures take them."

Those four seniors then all took the floor together to embark upon a wild five set match vs the Lions of Emerson College. The first two sets followed the same formula, one team jumps ahead early and the other is unable to catch-up from behind. In the first, it was Emerson who took command with an 18-9 lead. The Bears did claw back into the set and bring momentum into the second with a six point run before cutting their deficit to just two points on multiple occasions but an Emerson kill followed by an ace gave the Lions a 1-0 advantage. 

In the second, Coast Guard carried that late momentum from the first and ran with it, opening up a 9-2 lead that would prove too steep for Emerson. The Bears scored in chunks, with both an eight point and six point run in the set. In the end, it was the towering tandem of Sarah Somer and Corey Lemmer(San Francisco, CA) who put the set away with kills.

The pivotal third set was the most back and forth of all five, with 13 ties including 15-15, 16-16, 17-17, 18-18, and 19-19. At 19s however, is where the Lions took off to score the next six points in a row and take the third by a score of 25-19. 

In the must win fourth set, the Bears dropped the first point but then grabbed the lead and held on for the rest of the way despite never leading by more than five. It was also a milestone set for Bears senior Sarah Somer. With the score at 14-12, Somer notched her seventh kill of the afternoon and 500th of her career!

With both teams running on fumes, the fifth set was pure drama from start to finish. Sarah Somer, determined to win on her senior day, put the team on her back at the start of the set. The senior from Cary, North Carolina scored each of the Bears first four points with kills. The Bears then took the 5th set race to eight with back to back Corey Lemmer kills into the side switch. Out of that change however, Emerson found their momentum in the form of Sophia Schiappa(Burr Ridge, IL) at the service line. With Schiappa serving, the Lions scored five points in a row, three on Chloe Hokenson(McLean, VA) kills, to take a 10-9. With the Bears in jeopardy of seeing the match slip away, their attackers stepped up exactly when they needed to. Eloise Shirley(Rock Island, IL), Amelia Matson(Mililani, HI), and Abby Schweitzer(Emmaus, PA) recorded kills on consecutive plays to put the Bears back up by a score of 12-10. The next five points would alternate to bring the set to a 14-13 match point in favor of CGA. With everyone in attendance waiting with bated breath, the Bears wasted no time sealing their victory with an Abby Schweitzer kill that sent the whole roster onto the court to mob their team.

In the five set marathon, Coast Guard was anchored on defense by the trio of Laila Baameur, Amelia Matson, and Courtney Shire(Cape May, NJ). Baameur continued dominant streak with her third 30 dig performance of the season. Laila currently sits 3rd in the nation in digs per set and first in the NEWMAC in both digs per set and total digs. Matson recorded 14 digs while also putting down 13 kills. Courtney Shire had a 15 dig day in a gutsy performance, battling through pain and injury for the better part of the match. Behind Shire were a pair of titans, Sam Ventimiglia and Sarah Somer who showed their all-around prowess with eight and five digs respectively. 

Just ahead of Matson in kills were Abby Schweitzer and Sarah Somer who each had 14, with Schweitzer adding two blocks to Somer's three. Corey Lemmer and Sam Ventimiglia(Key West, FL) were also in double figures with 11 and 10 respectively, in two impressively efficient days. Lemmer swung at a .579 clip with Ventimiglia at .563. Supplying the opportunities for those big days from the CGA attack were rookie setters Ava Ahokovi(Honolulu, HI) and Holly Davis(Sisters, OR) with 31 and 23 assists respectively with Baameur and Shire each adding two. Ahokovi and Davis were all over the court as well, combining for 14 digs.

After today, both Coast Guard and Emerson will go on the road for the NEWMAC tournament first round on Tuesday November, 11th. Emerson College finishes off the regular season at 14-14(6-5 NEWMAC). They will be the #6 seed and travel to #3 Springfield College. Coast Guard rides a three game winning streak into the playoffs, finishing the season at 17-8(7-4 NEWMAC). The Bears will be the #5 seed and travel to #4 Smith College. Both match times are TBD.