ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. - The No. 22 Salisbury
University volleyball notched its sixth tournament championship of
the season as they went undefeated in the Seahawk Invitational this
weekend. The Sea Gulls defeated both Marietta College and
Gwynedd-Mercy College in straight sets, 3-0, on Saturday afternoon
to claim the title.
Salisbury (32-1) has won a nation best 32 consecutive matches.
The win streak now ranks 10th all-time in NCAA Division III
volleyball history. The all-time consecutive matches won record of
60 wins is held by Central (Iowa) College.
After some much needed rest from two hard fought matches last
night a recuperated Salisbury squad shrugged off the early morning
wake-up call and took care of business against Marietta (14-16) in
the 10 a.m. match. SU won 25-22, 25-14, 25-18.
Junior Rachel Downes notched her third straight
double-double in the win as she had a team-high 13 kills to go
along with 13 digs. The two middle-hitters for the Sea Gulls,
junior Nicole Massarelli and sophomore
Alexandra Malesick dominated the middle of court
to complement the outside effort from Downes. Massarelli recorded
12 kills and a solo block and Malesick had nine kills.
Junior Gabby Long, the lone Sea Gull to be
selected to the all-tournament team, led the defensive effort with
a team-high 18 digs and senior Jaime Marzocchi
(five kills, five digs) had another great match setting the ball as
she recorded 34 assists.
In the second match of the afternoon, Salisbury defeated
Gwynedd-Mercy (4-21) by the set scores of 25-5, 25-17, 25-13. The
first set was the fourth time the Sea Gulls have held an opponent
to single digit points in a set this season. The five points scored
set a new low point total by a SU opponent for the season. The
previous low was six which was accomplished twice.
Coach Margie Knight was able to give everyone
valuable experience in the win. The offensive barrage was anchored
by Downes (seven digs) with 12 kills. Sophomore Melissa
Stansbury had a solid game on the outside as she was
5-for-7 on kill attempts and had zero attack errors. Sophomore
Kathleen Cinelli contributed four kills and
Massarelli tallied three kills and was a force on the net with
three solo blocks.
Long matched her dig total from the first match with 18 and
Marzocchi split the setting duties with freshman Lindsay
Saltzman. In the first two sets, Marzocchi (three digs)
recorded 25 assists and Saltzman played the third set and recorded
seven assists. As part of the strong performance, the Sea Gulls
notched nine service aces. Four players had two aces apiece
including senior Sabrina Larmer, Downes, Long and
Saltzman.
Salisbury was one of two teams to go undefeated at the Seahawk
Invitational as Virginia Wesleyan College won all four matches. The
Marlins faced Gwynedd-Mercy, Marietta, St. Mary's and Neumann.
The maroon and gold will conclude the regular-season with a
final Capital Athletic Conference match on the road against
Gallaudet University on Wednesday, October 29, at 7 p.m. Salisbury
met Gallaudet earlier this season as part of the Green Terror
Invitational hosted by McDaniel College where SU defeated the
Bison, 3-0.
Seahawk Invitational All-Tournament Team:
Gabby Long - Salisbury
Monica Taylor - Gwynedd-Mercy
Becca Holzworth - Marietta
Kristen Verone - Neumann
Claire Kodan - St. Mary's (Md.)
Rebecca Leedom - Virginia Wesleyan
