BOSTON, Mass. -- #4 Simmons volleyball defeated #5 Emmanuel College 3-1 (25-22, 25-13, 23-25, 25-23) to advance to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference semifinals vs. #1 seeded Rivier College on Friday, November 2nd.

The Sharks hit over .500 in the opening set and had four players with double digit kills. Senior Caroline Boyd (Hamden, Mass.) had a game-high 16 kills and hit .300 on the evening. Freshman Raeann Nesta (Niantic, Conn.) posted 15 kills and only four errors for a .333 hitting percentage.

The Fenway neighbors battled until the end, as the Sharks took an early 2-0 lead but dropped the third set 25-23. Alison Donnelly and Nathalie Victoira took control of the Saints offense in the third set, while Yun-Ting Lee posted a match high 24 digs to keep Emmanuel alive and force the fourth game.

Sharks freshman Chanel Thomas (Phoenix, Ariz.) and senior Rachel Dufault (Westport, Mass.) were consistent on defense, recording 13 and 18 digs, respectively. Freshman Kyla McCabe-Corrow (Madbury, N.H.) posted 34 assists, a career high.

In the fourth game, the Sharks took a commanding eight-point lead but the Saints were relentless, battling back to within two points, 24-22. A Simmons error closed the gap to one point but the Sharks managed to hang on for the victory, 25-23.

With the win, the Sharks improve to 19-13, 9-3 GNAC, while the Saints end their 2012 season with an overall record of 14-18, 8-4 GNAC.