BOSTON, Mass. - After dropping a hard-fought opening set, UMass Boston Volleyball battled back to win three straight, taking home the 3-1 victory over the University of Southern Maine. 

THE BASICS
UMass Boston 3, University of Southern Maine 1

UMass Boston (12-7, 3-2 LEC)
University of Southern Maine (4-17, 0-5 LEC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
After trailing 21-17 late in the first set, the Beacons used four forced errors and a Paige Coulson service ace to claim a narrow 22-21 advantage. The comeback attempt was not to be, however, as the Huskies ripped off four straight points to claim a 1-0 lead in the match.

Trailing 16-12 in the second set, Southern Maine made attempts to chip away at the deficit. Three straight runs were snuffed out before they could start courtesy of three kills from Livia Trindade. With a comfortable lead late, the Beacons got kills from Mya Perron and Lauren Westlund to win the set 25-17, evening the match at 1-1.

The third set was all Beacons early. With Ally Dean at the service line, the team stretched a quick 3-1 lead to an 11-1 advantage. The Huskies tacked on some points late but a pair of kills from Taryn Broughal and one apiece for Trindade and Perron shut the door on a 25-13 set victory.

Hoping to seal the match in the fourth set, the Beacons found themselves down 10-7 early. With Westlund at the service line, that deficit quickly flipped to a 15-10 lead. A pair of Southern Maine points stopped the bleeding for a moment, but a 10-1 UMass Boston run closed out a match-clinching 25-13 victory. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• The Beacons' 12-7 record is their best through 19 games since the 2018 season
• UMass Boston dominated the battle of kills (45-28), service aces (12-3), and assists (42-26)
• Trindade led both sides with a season-high 14 kills
• Broughal improved her hitting percentage to .262 on the season, good for seventh-best in the LEC
• Westlund (14) and Ally Dean (16) combined for 30 of the team's 52 digs
• The Beacons have won four of their last five matchups against the Huskies, improving their record in the all-time series to 21-13

WHO'S NEXT
The Beacons will hit the road for a pair of games at Western Connecticut State University. After taking on the Wolves at noon they will play their first-ever match against the Knights of Mount Saint Mary College at 2:00 PM.