SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- Springfield College held the Mount Holyoke College volleyball team to 20 kills and a season-low attack percentage, as the visiting Pride defeated the host Lyons 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-15) in a NEWMAC match Tuesday night in Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium.

Springfield (19-3, 7-1 NEWMAC), ranked No. 27 in Division III, remained tied with Babson for second place in the NEWMAC standings. Mount Holyoke (12-9, 3-5 NEWMAC) moved to eighth place with the loss.

Ahunna James led Springfield with 10 kills, while Jodi Saelua and Aubrey Hughes posted seven kills apiece on just 23 attempts combined, with Hughes hitting at a .636 rate and Saelua hitting .500.

Springfield attacked at a .258 rate for the match and held Mount Holyoke to -.043, thanks in part to 11 team blocks, including six block assists by Saelua and five block assists by Hughes.

Senior Elle Rimando (Mililani, Hawaii) had 10 kills and eight digs for the Lyons, while senior Madeline Barton (Brookfield, Wis.) totaled six kills. Junior Kyra Staples (Chatham, Ill.) had a match-high 13 digs.

Springfield pulled away from an 8-8 tie in the first set with an 8-1 run, opening up a 10-point lead at 24-14 with a kill by Saelua, and another one ended the set at 25-15.

In the second set, a 7-2 Lyons run closed Springfield's lead to 15-14. Springfield answered with four points in a row, but the Lyons came back again, with a kill by junior Serena Li (Scarsdale, N.Y.) making it 20-18 and prompting a Springfield timeout. The Pride outscored the Lyons 5-2 out of the timeout to take the night's closest set and a 2-0 lead.

The third set saw Springfield take a 5-1 lead and not allowing Mount Holyoke within two points the rest of the way.

Mount Holyoke will host a tri-match with Maine Maritime Academy and Bates College this Saturday. The Lyons will play Maine Maritime at 11am and Bates no earlier than 3pm, with the two visitors facing off in-between at 1pm.

Springfield plays at Williams Friday at 7pm.