Ruffieux, Lunsford star in 3-1 Bulldog win over Dartmouth Tuesday

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Rookie Margot Ruffieux (Cary, N.C.) posted 14 kills with three aces while two more Bulldogs posted double-doubles as the Bryant University volleyball team topped Dartmouth, 3-1, at home Tuesday night.

Ruffieux added six digs and two blocks with a .323 attack percentage to her day, while classmate Kristin Kingi (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) posted 10 kills and 14 digs for her third double-double of the season. Sophomore Ally Lunsford (Minneola, Fla.) had a stellar day of her own for the Bulldogs (8-8), registering 10 kills with a match-high eight blocks, while setter Vika Nesterov (Kfar Saba, Israel) finished the night with 27 assists and 12 digs. Rookie setter Kirstyn Sperry (Phoenix, Ariz.) fell just shy of her own double-double effort with 16 assists and nine digs.

The Big Green (4-6) saw a match-leading 21 kills from Emily Astarita (9 digs), while Morgan Dressel added 11 more with three blocks. Allison Brady chipped in five stuffs to lead her side (8 kills), while Stacey Benton's 39 assists were a contest best.

The Bulldogs took an early edge in the opening frame after consecutive Ruffieux aces, 9-4. But the Big Green would tie the set at 14-14, and the score would stay tight through the remainder. A Lunsford kill followed by a Sperry ace would give the hosts the first chance at set point, but a Bryant service error and Paige Caridi (9 kills, 8 digs) kill knotted the game at 24-24. The teams would trade points all the way to 30-28, when a block by Caridi and Brady would put Dartmouth out in front in the match, 1-0.

A Taylor Onoyan (Crystal Lake, Ill.) (5 blocks) solo stuff put the Black and Gold up, 7-2, in the second, and Bryant would maintain a 15-11 lead midway through the frame. A 19-14 advantage forced the Big Green to take their first timeout, and the Bulldogs would finish off the game, 25-19.

Paced by four blocks from Lunsford, the Bulldogs led throughout much of a close third frame. Ruffieux and Kingi would each put up a trio of kills en route to the 25-19 win and 2-1 match lead.

The Bulldogs opened up another lead, 9-3, to start the fourth, but the Big Green quickly closed the gap with nine of the next 11 points to take over a 12-11 edge. The two sides battled from there before the Bulldogs surged ahead late for the 25-20 final and 3-1 match win. Ruffieux dominated for the Bulldog offense, registering six kills and a .750 attack percentage in the fourth set alone.

On the night, Bryant outhit Dartmouth, .252 to .182, and served up nine aces to the Big Green's seven. The Black and Gold won the margin in digs, 64-54, paced by a match-best 15 from senior Debora Magalhaes (Belo Horizonte, Brazil), and team blocks, 13-8.

The Bulldogs open up Northeast Conference play in their next contest, hosting St. Francis Brooklyn Saturday at 6:00 p.m. to start the team's first weekend of league action.