Anchorwomen volleyball ends year with sweep of Castleton on senior day, 3-0

Tim Yean

Sports Editor

Left to right: head coach Jenn Cabral, senior players Sydnee Pires and Olivia Miranda and assistant coach Amelia Murphy pose for a photo after the match. (photo cred. Tim Yean)

The RIC Anchorwomen volleyball team ended their season on an exclamation point as they swept Vermont State University, Castleton, 3-0 on senior day to finish the year with a 13-13 record and a 2-6 mark in the Little East Conference.

“It feels amazing, winning with people I love is an awesome feeling,” Sydnee Pires, one of the seniors celebrated today, told The Anchor following the match. The middle hitter Pires, along with junior outside hitter Sarina Marines, recorded eight kills apiece in the sweep to close out the middle blocker’s collegiate career. 

The seniors, Pires and right side hitter Olivia Miranda, were honored in a pre-match ceremony with their careers and highlights with the Anchorwomen recognized. 

“I’m sad that it’s over, but before the game and everything, my teammates made me feel so loved and cared for,” Miranda said. She notched a spot on the starting lineup in the Saturday contest, contributing to the dominant win with a kill and service ace.

Pires and Miranda with their senior day posters. (photo cred. Tim Yean)

RIC controlled throughout the entire match, holding the visiting Spartans to 15 or under in each of the sets. Head coach of the women's volleyball team, Jenn Cabral, was happy with the mentality and energy of the team entering today in a post-match interview.

“I’m so proud of the girls for ending it on a positive note,” Cabral said. “Proud of our seniors, we had a really good day today. We talked a lot about doing it for them.”

RIC blasted open right away on the first set, accumulating a 5-1 set lead before Castleton fought back to make it a one-point affair, 7-6, with the Anchorwomen still ahead. Undeterred, RIC sped past with an 8-1 run, a Pires kill from the middle forcing a timeout from Spartan head coach Jessica Trudeau. RIC maintained their momentum, finishing out the opening set 25-15 as an attack attempt by Castleton fell short.

Pires (second from left) with her family. (photo cred. Tim Yean)

The second set opened up close as the Anchorwomen struggled to fend off Castleton, maintaining yet another one-point advantage, 10-9. The rest of the set was all for the Anchorwomen’s taking. A Sarina Marines kill assisted by fellow junior setter Yuleisy Alvelo made way for seven consecutive points for the Anchorwomen en route to a 15-3 run to close out the second set with a 25-12 blowout.

The final set started and ended with more Anchorwomen runs. Junior middle hitter Andrayah Williams’ kill plus back-to-back service aces by Alvelo set the Anchorwomen up with a comfortable 3-0 lead. The Spartans, throughout the final frame, were unable to string up more than two consecutive points per possession. Rhode Island College closed out the match with four straight points to end the match victorious. Poetically, Pires was the final server.

The Anchorwomen end their season with their second LEC victory of the year, the other being a sweep against Keene State College, in which both seniors told The Anchor it was their favorite memory of the year.

“We never give up, and we push every game to max capacity,” Pires concluded.