SALISBURY, Md. – After dropping its first two sets of the day, the Salisbury University volleyball team secured six straight set victories to hand the 19th-ranked Mary Washington Eagles their first loss of the season, 3-2 (19-25, 19-25, 25-21, 25-17, 15-11) and sweep the Stevens Ducks, 3-0 (25-11, 25-17, 25-16), on Saturday afternoon at Maggs Physical Activities Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED vs. MARY WASHINGTON

• Neither side flinched at the start of the match, with the teams playing to a 15-15 deadlock through the first 30 points. The Eagles were the first to find a rhythm, taking six of the next eight points to lead 21-17.
• Salisbury stole a pair of points late in the opening set, but Mary Washington held firm and took three consecutive points to win set one, 25-19.
• The second set opened with similar see-sawing action, with SU and UMW knotted at 14-14. A put away by Jackie Mitchell kickstarted a run that put the Sea Gulls ahead 17-14, but the Eagles took 11 of the final 13 points to grab another 25-19 set win.
• Salisbury fell behind early in set three before scoring seven out of 10 to take a 10-9 lead. The sides traded small runs across the next 14 points and UMW led 17-16.
• The Sea Gulls snatched the momentum, though, embarking on a seven-point run to lead 23-17 before handing the Eagles only their third lost set of the season with a 25-21 win. Mitchell landed the kill to clinch the fixture for SU.
• Salisbury kept its foot on the gas, soaring to an 11-5 advantage in the fourth set. UMW scored four unanswered, but the spark was soon snuffed by a three-point stretch for the maroon and gold to make it 14-9.
• The Eagles used consecutive points to bring the score within two, 19-17, before the hosts used a pair of service aces from Natalie Uibel and two kills from Mitchell to drive a 6-0 run to force the fifth set, 25-17.
• Salisbury entered the final set on fire, jumping out to a 6-1 advantage. UMW found three points before a 5-0 Sea Gull stretch, capped by a Julie Altieri kill, that gave them a 12-4 lead.
• The visitors did not go quietly, taking six of the next seven to slice the margin to three, 13-10. The sides traded points before Kiley McTaggart slammed the door with a kill and locked down the 15-11 fifth-set triumph.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Jackie Mitchell led the Sea Gull offense with 16 kills while swinging an efficient .361 in the match. Mitchell also tallied eight digs and four block assists against the Eagles.
• Kiley McTaggart proved another key cog in the Salisbury machine, tallying a career-high 15 kills and five block assists while adding a trio of digs.
• Julie Altieri twirled a gem against as primary setter, collecting career highs in assists (38), digs (11), and kills (8).
• Emma Quandt collected a career-best 10 total blocks in the win, including nine block assists. She become just the second SU player to ever register double-digit blocks in one game after Kim Sheedy landed 11 blocks against York (Pa.) on Nov. 7, 2002.
• Grace Rail and Natalie Uibel led the way in digs with 22 each. Rail added six assists, while Uibel chipped in four kills.
• The Sea Gulls swung .176 as a team, landing 54 kills against 23 errors. SU put together impressive fourth- and fifth-set hitting percentages of .375 and .400, respectively.
• SU blocked 15 Eagle attacks on the day, tying a season high.

MARY WASHINGTON GAME NOTES

• Emily Flamm led the Eagle offense with 13 kills, swinging .360 for the match while adding four digs.
• Jordan Lyons and Bryanna Miller each added 10 kills in the loss. Lyons collected 16 digs and four service aces while Miller tallied nine digs.
• Brenna Campbell picked up 22 assists and seven digs.
• Hannah Livermon finished with a game-high 34 digs.
• The Eagles swung .102 as a team, collecting 50 kills against 32 errors.
• UMW landed 13 service aces against the Sea Gulls' nine.

HOW IT HAPPENED vs. STEVENS

• Salisbury jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the second match of the day, powered by consecutive kills from Emma Quandt. Stevens closed the margin to one, but the hosts claimed five of the next seven to lead 10-6.
• From there the Sea Gulls erupted, claiming seven points in a row and 11 of the next 13 to lead 21-8. A few Ducks points could not keep Salisbury from the 25-11 win in set one.
• In the second set, it was the Ducks who found their current, scoring six of the first nine to lead 6-3, but Salisbury unleashed a 12-3 swing that gave the hosts a 15-9 lead.
• The teams traded runs down the stretch of the set two, with the Ducks narrowing the margin to five at 22-17. A kill from Natalie Uibel helped snap the stretch and secured a 25-17 set win to put SU ahead 2-0.
• Set three began with the largest run of the season for the Sea Gulls, who embarked on a 14-0 push led by Kayla Pedersen in service. The Ducks battled back into the set and got the closeout set within eight down the stretch, but Gwen Eustace struck the final bell to seal a 25-16 set win and the sweep of Stevens.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Kiley McTaggart led a balanced Sea Gull attack with 10 kills (.323) while adding a trio of block assists.
• Natalie Uibel and Emma Quandt each added seven kills in the sweep. Quandt swung a crisp .545 in the win, while Uibel added five digs.
• Julie Altieri piled up five kills on six swings (.667) while leading the team with 18 assists and adding 11 digs.
• Brooke Young picked up seven assists in the victory.
• Grace Rail led the Sea Gull back line with 15 digs.
• Kayla Pedersen posted seven digs and a trio of service aces.
• The Sea Gulls closed the match with a .340 team hitting percentage (38 kills, five errors), swinging .455 in the third set.
• SU blocked eight Duck attacks and went the whole match without being stuffed at the net.

STEVENS GAME NOTES

• Cleo Shannon led the Ducks with nine kills and added four digs.
• Gabbi Roberts tallied a team-high 12 assists. Molly Harris finished just behind with nine.
• Madison Sappia's 15-dig effort paced the Ducks. Liz Patterson collected 10 sigs while adding five kills.
• The Ducks swung .087 for the match (28 kills, 19 errors).

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls embark on a three-game road stretch, beginning with a mid-week trip to Marymount (Va.) on Tuesday.
• The match is scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. start in Arlington, Va.

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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 and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 23 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 196 conference championships, and 45 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.