WESTON, Mass. -- Sophomore Megan Purser (Miami, Fla.) put down 16 kills and first year Reilly Coombs (Deland, Fla.) tallied 20 points to lead the Simmons University women's volleyball team in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference tri-match split, defeating host Regis (Mass.), 3-1 (25-23, 22-25, 25-8, 25-12), before falling to nationally-ranked number four Johnson & Wales University (R.I.), 3-0 (25-6, 25-11, 25-18), today at Higgins Court in Weston, Mass. The Sharks are now 6-9 overall and 2-2 in league play, while Regis is 8-6 and 1-3 and JWU extends its win-streak to 15 to improve to 15-1 and 5-0.

Purser swung for 16 kills on the day, while committing just four attack errors to fuel a .375 hitting percentage and added a block solo for Simmons, while Coombs put down 14 kills, fired six aces and picked up 21 digs.

The Sharks' offensive efficiency got better as the match went on against Regis, culminating in a .350 and .471 rate in the third and fourth sets, respectively. Purser spiked for 10 kills on a .389 hitting mark to go with a block solo, while Coombs registered 10 kills and picked up nine digs to go with five aces. Sophomore middle blocker Brittany Gotts (Topsfield, Mass.) hit a blistering .545 with eight kills and added a dig and a block assist, while sophomore setter Faith Gray-Williams (Las Vegas, Nev.) swung for eight kills, set for 20 assists, scooped up eight digs and served for a pair of aces. 

Johnson & Wales proved to be too much for Simmons, hitting .389 for the match, including .409 and .433 in the opening two frames.

The Sharks' middle hitters led the team offensively, with first year Amanda Fortune (Round Rock, Texas) putting down six kills on a .500 hitting mark to go with two blocks, while Purser also spiked for six kills on a .357 hitting clip in addition to picking up a dig. Coombs got down for a match-high 12 digs and added four kills and an ace. 

Simmons returns to the court on Thursday, October 4 when it hosts Wheaton College (Mass.) for a 7:00 p.m. match at Moore Gymnasium, while Regis hosts Colby-Sawyer College on October 3 at 7:00 p.m. and Johnson & Wales hosts Emmanuel College (Mass.) on the same night at 7:00 p.m.