SALISBURY, Md. – The Salisbury University volleyball team sent off its five-member senior class in grand fashion, winning its 13th and 14th straight matches by taking down the Messiah Falcons 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 26-24) and the Virginia Wesleyan Marlins 3-1 (18-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-17) on Saturday afternoon at the Maggs Physical Activities Center.
With the twin triumphs, the Sea Gulls extend their longest winning streak since 2012 (20 straight). Salisbury's 21-2 record continues its best start since the 2012 slate (24-1) and matches its win total from each of the last two seasons. SU also finished a perfect 9-0 at home this season, its first undefeated campaign at Maggs PAC since 2011 (13-0).
Before the first match of the day, the Sea Gulls honored their five graduating seniors –
Jackie Mitchell,
Kayla Pedersen,
Emma Quandt,
Grace Rail, and
Natalie Uibel – as well as student assistant coach
Micah Whitman. The victory was the quintet's 78th over their four seasons together.
MATCH ONE
The Sea Gulls and Falcons sparred evenly through the beginning of the first set. SU seized control at the 14-14 mark, as an
Alyssa DeWaal kill sparked a 9-2 run, capped by a tally from
Julie Altieri that made it 23-16. SU iced it moments later, 25-18, on a Messiah attack error.
The second set proved just as competitive, with the Falcons sporting an 18-15 lead late. Altieri then put the team on her back, contributing directly to the next four points (kill, ace, assist of
Emma Quandt, ace) as part of a 10-1 closing push.
Natalie Uibel finished it off with her own service ace, booking it at 25-19.
Both sides put up long runs in the early portion of the third set. Down 16-10, Salisbury got back into it on two MU errors and two Altieri kills, eventually drawing even at 19-19. The teams then boxed to the finish line, with Leah Youtzy denying Uibel to give the Falcons set point at 24-23.
Gwen Eustace answered with a kill, though, then
Kayla Pedersen dealt an ace and Uibel blasted a kill to finish off the sweep, 26-24.
Game Notes
- Gwen Eustace paced the Sea Gulls up front with 10 kills on a .368 swing percentage.
- Kiley McTaggart powered down nine kills of her own, while Emma Quandt added seven.
- Julie Altieri served up 28 assists with seven kills (.353), four digs, and two service aces.
- Grace Rail racked up 22 digs, plus six assists. Natalie Uibel dug out 14 attacks.
- Kayla Pedersen set a career high with six service aces, accounting for over half of SU's 10 aces for the match.
- The Sea Gulls hit .241 as a team, good for 39 kills.
MATCH TWO
The Marlins erased an early 6-2 deficit by stifling the Sea Gulls up front. VWU held Salisbury to a .000 swing percentage in the first set and closed on a 6-1 run, using a Breana Brooks-Hannah Smith block to salt it away, 25-18.
The Sea Gulls hammered back in the second set, going up 10-5 early and soon after ballooning a 15-12 margin to 20-12 on five straight kills between
Emma Quandt,
Kiley McTaggart, and
Julie Altieri. VWU never got closer than six the rest of the way, and McTaggart finished it off with a kill to draw SU even in the match, 25-16.
Tied 6-6 early in the third set, the Sea Gulls and Marlins each landed six-point haymakers, with SU taking a 12-6 lead that VWU instantly erased at 12-12. The teams danced evenly through the rest of the fixture, but the Sea Gulls began pulling away as an 18-17 lead grew to four points on two occasions, with back-to-back attack errors clinching it for the home side, 25-20.
VWU blitzed to a 6-1 lead early in the fourth set, but the Sea Gulls caught up at 9-9, the first of six ties across the middle of the frame. With things all square at 17-17, Salisbury caught fire and scored the final eight points of the match. McTaggart got things going with a kill to get the serve in the hands of
Natalie Uibel, who finished things off with a service ace to cement the perfect season at home, 25-17.
Game Notes
- Kiley McTaggart powered down a team-high 13 kills on a .257 attack percentage.
- Gwen Eustace ruled the net with nine kills and seven blocks (two solo), plus three service aces.
- Natalie Uibel enjoyed a well-rounded afternoon with nine kills and a season-high 22 digs, as well as a trio of assists, aces, and blocks.
- Emma Quandt swung .500 en route to landing eight kills without an error.
- Julie Altieri pushed up 38 assists with 13 digs for her 12th double-double this season (25 career). Altieri also notched six block assists and three kills.
- Grace Rail chased down a season-high 29 digs, giving her 1,595 for her career to surpass Abbey Petrecca '08 (1,559) for seventh in program history.
- Kayla Pedersen and Prudence Marco each chipped in eight digs.
- The Sea Gulls powered down 46 kills on a .161 team swing percentage, holding VWU to a .079 attack clip for the match.
The Sea Gulls will close the regular season with five straight matches away from home, starting next Friday at Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) mainstay Christopher Newport. First serve from Newport News, Va., is set for 6 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 and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 23 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, 199 conference championships, and 50 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.
