Cambridge, Mass. – No. 4 seed Babson College defeated No. 3 Clark University, 25-18, 25-19, 25-11, to capture its second straight NEWMAC Women's Volleyball Championship on Sunday afternoon at host MIT. With the win, the Beavers (27-8) automatically qualified for the upcoming NCAA Tournament to be held November 13-15. The Cougars (22-8) see their magical season end just short of the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.

Mary Donahue (Braintree, Mass.) was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after compiling 38 kills, a .410 hitting percentage, nine digs, three aces, and three blocks through three matches for the Beavers.

In the title match, she led all players with 12 kills and had a .379 hitting performance as Jenny Karnes (Houston, Texas) posted eight kills and three blocks. Lorraine Mackiewicz (Edison, N.J.) registered 10 digs, seven kills, seven blocks, and three aces while freshman Gizem Yilmaz (Istanbul, Turkey) racked up six blocks.

For the Scarlet and White, Marina Ramos (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) paced Clark with nine kills and two aces in the program's first NEWMAC Championship match appearance. Shannon Glass-Smythe (Albuquerque, N.M.), contributed eight digs, six kills, and two blocks, becoming the school's all-time leader in kills (1,064).

Mia Cattaneo (Santa Barbara, Calif.) recorded 14 digs while Rayme Quiban (Seattle, Wash.) tacked on nine digs. Freshman Rachel Webb (Celina, Texas) rounded out the squad with 22 assists and six digs.

The Cougars registered the first three points of the match en route to a 7-3 lead courtesy of a kill by Courtney Pharr (Seattle, Wash.). Babson responded by going on a 16-5 run as a block by Yilmaz and Robertson made the score, 19-12.

A kill from freshman Ana Mercado (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) along with an ace from Ramos kept Clark within striking distance but the Beavers used a 4-1 spurt to reach set point at 24-15. Two miscues and a kill by Glass-Smythe extended the frame but a serving error gave Babson the win.

The Beavers raced out to a 7-1 advantage in the second stanza and maintained a comfortable cushion throughout. The Cougars narrowed the gap to five on six occasions, the last at 24-19 on a kill from Hannah Fox (Dracut, Mass.), but the Scarlet and White's attempt at generating a late rally was then thwarted courtesy of a set-sealing kill by Donahue. 

In the final set Babson established a 10-3 lead, but the Cougars fought back, slowly chipping away at the deficit as a Glass-Smythe kill brought it within 12-8. This was as close as it would get, however, as the Beavers finished off the match with a 13-3 run. Mackiewicz accounted for three of the last six points, including the title-clinching kill.

Despite the loss, the future for the Cougars looks extremely bright as they lose just one player – Glass-Smythe - and will return a host of key contributors to a squad that advanced further than any other team in the NEWMAC era.