After a successful weekend in Washington, D.C., the volleyball team came back home to demolish local foe Providence College on Tuesday night with a 25-10, 25-18, 25-18 sweep.
"We were expecting to win," said co-captain Natalie Meyers '09.
Bruno dominated on defense, holding the Friars to a .122 hitting percentage - improving their Ivy best mark - with four blocks and 43 total digs. The team displayed great control on offense as well, hitting a sizzling .655 in the first game and finishing the game at .396.
"That was one of our team goals - to raise our hitting percentage from last year," said co-captain Lyndse Yess '09, who led the team on defense with 13 digs while putting down eight kills on 11 attempts for a team-leading .636 personal hitting percentage. Across the court from her, outside hitter Megan Toman '11 also created havoc on the Friars' half of the court, putting down nine kills at a .350 clip.
Providence was playing without three of its senior starters because of suspensions, and Brown capitalized on the Friars' lack of leadership, holding them to four kills in the first game while Bruno ended the first game on a 15-5 run.
"Even though they didn't have their starters, we were still able to focus and win," said Meyers, who handed out 31 assists to go along with five digs. Annika Gliottone '12 dug up 11 balls in the libero spot.
In the second and third games, the Bears built impressive leads and the Friars could not get above the 20-point mark.
Brianna Williamson '11 took care of business on the right side, blasting a team-leading 11 kills along with a .526 hitting percentage for the match. Middles Laurielle Hofer '12 and Danielle Vaughan '11 chipped in six and eight kills, respectively. The team also aced Providence six times, three coming from Williamson.
"It felt a little more like a scrimmage," Williamson said of the one-sided game. "It's good to learn that even when the pace of the game is slow, we can still play well."
"If we keep doing the things we've been doing, we're going to have a very successful season," Yess said.
Thirteen Bears got on the floor to contribute to the victory, and the 4-1 team has already amassed half of the number of total wins they had last season. They'll look to add to their winning tally with their first home matches this weekend when they host the Brown Invitational, opening up against Stony Brook on Friday night.
"We're hoping to win our own tournament. We haven't won it while I've been here," Meyers said. "We have a legit chance."
The Bears will finish off their quest for the unofficial state championship when they play Rhode Island at home Oct. 1.
