SALISBURY, Md. – Down 9-3 in the fifth set, the Salisbury University volleyball team unleashed a furious comeback, scoring the final 12 points to stun the Marymount (Va.) Saints, 3-2 (25-19, 16-25, 17-25, 25-16, 15-9) on Tuesday night at the Maggs Physical Activities Center.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
- Leading 7-6 in the first set, the Sea Gulls pieced together three in a row on kills from Angelina Casserly and Jackie Mitchell and an attack error to go up 10-6. After the Saints closed the gap to 12-10, SU went on a 6-1 run go boost the lead to 18-11. Jenna Feinauer blasted three kills with a block assist during the push.
- MMU steadied up and got as close as 23-19, but Feinauer teamed up with Brooke Young and Amanda Chew for back-to-back stuffs, putting the opening frame on ice, 25-19.
- The Saints rebounded and came out swinging in the second set, riding a pair of Alexis Franklin service aces as part of an early 5-0 run that made it 7-2.
- Salisbury netted two of the next three to get back within 8-4, then after the teams traded three-point swings, MMU put together another trio of points on a Sarah Pham ace and kills from Myia Jeter and Franklin to go up 14-7.
- SU never got closer than five for the rest of the set, and the Saints evened the match by taking the fixture, 25-16, closing out on a kill from Maya Harris.
- Down 2-0 early in the third set, Chew landed two kills and Grace Rail dealt an ace to put SU up 3-2. The teams then went back-and-forth until MMU held an 11-9 lead, at which point the Saints netted six of the next eight points, riding another Franklin ace to fortify a 17-11 advantage.
- Salisbury again could only get as close as five the rest of the way, and Marymount booked the set, 25-17, to go up 2-1 in the match.
- The Saints threatened to run away with the fourth set, building an early 7-2 lead. From there the Sea Gulls ignited for six in a row, using two Chew kills and strikes from Mitchell and Delaney Madsen to surge in front, 8-7.
- After Harris answered with a kill, Casserly and Mitchell blasted kills, then Casserly and Feinauer teamed up for a block that pushed the SU advantage to 11-8. The teams traded the next handful of blows, at which point Salisbury built its lead to 16-11 on a Chew kill, Rail ace and Madsen-Young block.
- MMU eventually clawed back to within 19-16, but the Sea Gulls locked it down with a set-closing 6-0 run. Feinauer and Young each notched kills and Blair Pausic an ace, and a Saint error clinched it for Salisbury, 25-16, to force a decisive fifth.
- Leading 4-2 early in the final set, Marymount went on a 6-1 run, using back-to-back aces from Elissa Munsterman to go up 9-3.
- Munsterman went up for an attack on the next volley and was stuffed by Madsen, setting off a stunning tag-team performance. Casserly and Madsen pounded back-to-back kills, then after an MMU ballhandling error reduced the SU deficit to 9-7, Madsen blasted three straight kills to swing the lead to Salisbury at 10-9.
- Casserly followed up with another kill of her own, then the duo rose up to block Harris' swing and make it 12-9. Casserly then demolished two more kills, giving SU match point at 14-9.
- Chew joined the party and shut it down with a service ace, making it an even dozen to close out the set and the match, 15-9.
SALISBURY GAME NOTES
- Amanda Chew put together her second 20-20 performance this season, registering 20 kills and 20 digs. Chew's sixth straight double-double gives her 39 for her career and 13 this season.
- With her fourth 20-kill outing of the year, Chew now boasts 1,083 career kills, moving her past Lindsay Lawson '07 (1,064) for 10th in SU history.
- Angelina Casserly matched a season high with 12 kills against just one error on 21 attacks, good for a transcendent .524 swing percentage. Delaney Madsen also swung over .500 for the match, landing six kills against one error (.556).
- Casserly and Madsen were directly responsible for 10 points during the Sea Gulls' 12-0 fifth-set run. Madsen accounted for four kills and 1.5 blocks, while Casserly notched four kills and half a block.
- Jenna Feinauer powered nine kills (.316) and eight blocks (one solo), contributing on two-thirds of Salisbury's 12 blocks for the match.
- Jackie Mitchell chipped in eight kills and four digs.
- Blair Pausic led the Sea Gulls with 26 assists, plus six digs and a service ace. Brooke Young served up 23 assists to go along with eight digs, six kills, three block assists and an ace.
- Grace Rail corralled a team-high 26 digs with five assists and two aces.
- Salisbury set a new season high with 65 kills in the match, committing 24 errors over 166 swings for a .247 hitting percentage. SU swung an impressive .500 as a team in the fifth set, landing 11 kills against just two errors.
- The Sea Gulls have played seven matches this season that have gone the distance, going 4-3 in five-setters.
- SU is now 19-3 all-time against Marymount and has won nine straight matchups dating back to the 2015 season, including two in 2022 after a 3-1 victory on Sept. 23.
MARYMOUNT GAME NOTES
- Elissa Munsterman paced the Saints around the court with 16 kills and 14 digs, plus three service aces, three assists and three block assists.
- Myia Jeter landed 12 kills and swung .308 for the match, plus four block assists.
- Maya Harris narrowly missed a double-double with nine kills and eight digs.
- Alexis Franklin posted well-rounded numbers of 35 assists, 10 digs, four kills, four aces and three block assists.
- Natalie Garbalosa chased down a team-high 25 digs, while Sarah Pham added 10.
- The Saints put up a .169 swing percentage, powering 49 kills against 21 errors on 166 attacks.
UP NEXT
- The Sea Gulls will play their final home game of the season on Saturday against the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays.
- Saturday will feature pregame Senior Day festivities for Salisbury's five graduating seniors: Angelina Casserly, Amanda Chew, Jenna Feinauer, Jensen Haas and Blair Pausic.
- First serve is set for 2 p.m. with coverage on the Sea Gull Sports Network (SGSN) beginning at 1:45 p.m.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football, Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse and the Metropolitan Swimming and Diving Conference for men's and women's swimming. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, and dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on-and-off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 22 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 189 conference championships and 43 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or on social media @SUSeaGulls.