Tartans Begin UAA Play with Two Victories

(CHICAGO, Ill.) – The Carnegie Mellon University volleyball team opened University Athletic Association (UAA) play with a pair of victories at the University of Chicago on Saturday afternoon. The Tartans first topped Brandeis University 3-2 (25-13, 25-20, 23-25, 23-25, 15-5) before defeating Case Western Reserve University 3-1 (25-20, 17-25, 25-15, 30-28).

In the win over Brandeis, Senior Vivian Beaudoin (Washington, N.J. / Warren Hills) and sophomores Jane Dean (Wilmette, Ill. / New Trier) and Laura Reichard (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico / Saint John's School) all recorded double digit kills. Beaudoin ended with a team-high 13, Dean recorded 12 and Reichard ended with 10. Sophomore Michelle Deng (Calgary, Alberta / Western Canada) dished out 37 assists.

Four Tartans had multiple aces with freshman Abby Chen (Fairfax, Va. / Oakton) and junior Olivia Devereux (Manhattan Beach, Calif. / Marymount) leading with four and three, respectively.

At the net Dean recorded a career-best eight block assists with Beaudoin tying her career-high with six block assists. Chen had a season-high 22 digs while Reichard had 17, Deng a career-best 14 and sophomore Mindee Lai (Belmont, Mass. / Belmont) and senior Liz Jankowski (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Oakland Catholic) each had 12. It was a career-high for Jankowski.

In the nightcap win over the Spartans, Dean and Devereux both notched a career-high in kills with 20 and 14. Senior Carrie Stewart (Victor, N.Y./Victor) tied her career-best with 12 kills while Reichard totaled 11. Deng handed out a career-best 57 assists and Chen had three more aces to lead the Tartans.

Defensively, Reichard had a career-best 27 digs. Chen finished with 17 digs with Lai tabbing a career-high 13. Both Deng and Jankowski had 11 digs each.

The Tartans will next face fifth-ranked Emory University on Sunday, September 19 at Chicago.