Claremont, Calif. - The No. 20-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Volleyball team used a strong first set and held off the Sagehens in the second two sets to capture a 3-0 win at Voelkel Gymnasium on Friday evening. 

Set scores were 25-11, 25-21, 25-20 as CMS improves to 20-5 overall and 11-2 in the SCIAC, staying in the race for the conference title after defeating No. 2 Cal Lutheran in five sets on Tuesday. The Sagehens fall to 15-9 overall and 7-5 in the SCIAC, but remain safely in the top four in the conference standings (the top four qualify for the SCIAC Tournament). 

Senior All-American Allie Frappier led the Sagehens with 13 kills, but had less success against CMS than she did at Voelkel Gymnasium last year, when she set a school record with 40 kills in a four-set win. Junior libero Michelle Schultz (pictured) had a spectacular performance defensively with 21 digs, many of which came on sprawling efforts to keep the ball alive.

However, CMS used big runs in all three sets to take the win. The first set saw the Athenas take advantage of Frappier stuck on the back row with a 14-2 run to turn an 8-5 lead into a commanding 22-7 advantage before settling for the 25-11 win.

The second set had Pomona-Pitzer in good position to level the match, leading 19-17, but CMS scored the next seven points in a row to take a 24-19 lead. An Ellen Yamasaki kill stopped the run momentarily, but freshman Sarah Bruml finished off the set with a kill and a 25-20 win.

The final set was 13-12 in favor of the Athenas, who then used a 7-2 run to take control at 20-14. The Sagehens used a quick 3-0 run to try to rally their way back in it, but CMS answered back with a 3-0 run of its own to put the final set out of reach. 

Nicole Kerkhof led CMS with 14 kills, as the Athenas hit .331 as a team for the match, including .515 in the opening set, when they had 18 kills in 33 attempts and only one error. Megan Coleman matched Schultz with 21 kills from the libero spot for the Athenas. 

Pomona-Pitzer is back in action tomorrow with a road match at Redlands, beginning at 6 p.m.