Boston College kept rolling Saturday afternoon, finishing off a clean run through the Boston College Invitational with a four-set win over New Hampshire, 25-18, 22-25, 25-20, 25-20, in Chestnut Hill.
The Eagles came out of the weekend at 5-0 overall and 0-0 in ACC play, and they also snapped a long dry spell against the Wildcats. BC moved to 8-11 all-time against New Hampshire and picked up its first victory in the series since 2015.
Sam Hoppes led the way with a career-best 17 kills on a .406 hitting percentage and added five total blocks. Reese Dunkle also posted a career night, finishing with 11 kills on 16 attempts.
Audrey Ross chipped in 10 kills and a service ace, while Brooklyn Yelland matched her career high with four service aces. Lucie Vesela set the tone offensively with a game-high 23 assists, the most by an Eagle this season.
BC had to work for it after New Hampshire opened the first set with the early edge. The Eagles answered with a 4-0 burst sparked by Yelland’s serving to go up 9-7, then pulled away after Hoppes delivered her third kill to grab the lead at the media timeout.
A 7-2 run followed, built on five combined kills from Hoppes and Dunkle, and that stretch pushed the Eagles ahead 22-15. The Wildcats kept fighting, but Boston College closed out the set 25-18.
The second set flipped the script. BC started strong with kills from Laney Blevins, Sofija Marjanovic and Hoppes, but New Hampshire answered with a 4-0 run to take control and force a timeout.
The Eagles responded with another surge, as Yelland stacked two more service aces and Dunkle added her fifth kill to make it 16-14. Still, the Wildcats found another answer, reclaimed a three-point cushion late, and finished the set with back-to-back kills to win 25-22.
Boston College settled back in during the third. Hoppes and Ross fueled an 8-4 start, and even after New Hampshire trimmed the margin, the Eagles kept the pressure on with a 5-1 run to go ahead 16-11. Dunkle, Ross and Hoppes continued to score, and with BC leading 23-20, the Wildcats handed over consecutive errors to give the Eagles the set, 25-20.
The fourth set belonged to Boston College’s middle blockers early, as Naomi Watson, Dunkle and Blevins helped build a 4-0 lead. New Hampshire got within two, but the Eagles slammed the door with a 7-0 run.
Dunkle delivered back-to-back kills to stretch the margin to 15-8 at the media timeout, and after play resumed, Marjanovic and Ross finished the job by setting up match point. Ross then landed her 10th kill of the afternoon to seal the 25-20 set and the match.
Boston College is back in action Wednesday, Sept. 9, when it hosts Vanderbilt as part of the Showdown at the Net. First serve is set for 7 p.m., and the match will stream on ACCNX.
In Other News...
Boston College Already Faces A Familiar Problem Fans Feared
Boston Colleges season opener in the Fenway Bowl rematch with Cincinnati turned into a familiar frustration, the kind that leaves a coach shaking his head and fans wondering how much of the early damage was self-inflicted. The Eagles fell 34-15 after a sloppy afternoon that featured turnovers, penalties and defensive breakdowns, while Cincinnati quarterback JC French IV kept finding the end zone and making Boston College pay for each mistake.
Bill OBrien and several players were quick to acknowledge the issues afterward, and the tone was less about excuses than urgency. The Eagles know the margin for error is thin when the operation gets messy, and the first game offered a blunt reminder that cleaner execution has to come quickly if this season is going to avoid the same problems that have haunted the program before. [Read more 🡒]
Boston College's Same Costly Problems Just Ruined Mason McKenzie's Debut
Boston College opened the season with a 34-15 loss to Cincinnati, and for a while the focus was on Mason McKenzies first FBS start and what it might mean for the offense moving forward. The transfer quarterback gave the Eagles a noticeable spark in his debut, but the bigger storyline from the opener was all too familiar: penalties, uneven special teams, and a handful of wasted chances that kept the game from ever feeling under control.
Cincinnati kept finding ways to turn those mistakes into momentum, leaning on key plays and a steady rushing attack to pull away. The Eagles also had a couple of moments that could have changed the feel of the first half, but those opportunities slipped by, leaving Boston College with the same frustrating questions it brought into the fall. [Read more 🡒]
Pitt Fans Still Won't Believe How Brutal This Hit Was
Acrisure Stadium had already settled into the kind of physical November rhythm that usually defines Pitt-Boston College matchups when Khari Johnson delivered the sort of hit that stopped everyone in their tracks. Late in the first half on Nov. 16, 2023, the Boston College defensive back launched helmet-first into Pittsburgh tight end Malcolm Epps as Epps was up in the air and unable to protect himself, and the officials immediately flagged it as targeting.
The play turned into one of the days most memorable moments because of how hard it looked in real time, and because the call left no doubt about what the officials had seen. Johnsons removal from the game changed the tone for Boston Colleges defense, while Epps stayed in the contest and kept moving forward for Pitt as the teams played on through the rest of the afternoon. [Read more 🡒]