SALISBURY, Md. – The Salisbury University volleyball team won its sixth and seventh matches in a row in convincing fashion, sweeping past the Christopher Newport Captains 3-0 (25-17, 28-26, 25-23) and the Scranton Royals 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-15) on Saturday afternoon at the Maggs Physical Activities Center.
MATCH ONE
The two sides danced together through the early first set until the 13-13 mark, at which point the Sea Gulls rattled off seven in a row, capped by a
Natalie Uibel kill, that put SU on top 20-13.
Gwen Eustace finished the job moments later with a strike on a feed from
Julie Altieri to salt away the opening fixture, 25-17.
Set two featured multiple runs by both teams, with Salisbury seizing control at 18-14 on the back of a five-point flourish. CNU soon after erased a 22-18 deficit with five-of-six to get it square at 23-23. The Sea Gulls had set point at 24-23 and the Captains set point at 26-25, but a kill and block by Eustace and an attack error clinched the set for SU, 28-26.
The Sea Gulls faced a 14-9 hole early in the third set but went on a 7-2 push, drawing even at 16-16 on back-to-back hammers from
Kiley McTaggart. The teams boxed evenly from there until it reached 23-23, at which point McTaggart landed another kill and Eustace rose up for a match-clinching solo block, putting it in the books for SU 25-23.
Game Notes
- Kiley McTaggart powered down a team-leading 14 kills on a .310 swing percentage.
- Gwen Eustace swung a healthy .467 en route to eight kills. She also notched four solo stuffs as part of the Sea Gulls' seven blocks for the match.
- Jackie Mitchell landed nine kills, while Natalie Uibel added seven kills with 14 digs.
- Julie Altieri recorded her eighth double-double of the season with 31 assists and 12 digs, plus four service aces and two kills.
- Grace Rail accumulated 17 digs with five assists and two aces.
- SU swung .218 for the match and limited CNU to a .158 hitting percentage.
- The Sea Gulls have now won five straight matches against their Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) rivals dating back to 2022, as well as six of their last eight since 2021.
MATCH TWO
All square at 10-10 in set one, the Sea Gulls netted the next five to take a 15-10 lead, with
Emma Quandt factoring in for three blocks and a kill during the run. Leading 20-17 leader in the fixture, SU closed it out on a 5-1 flourish, with a
Julie Altieri kill clinching it at 25-18.
Salisbury led for most of the second set, going up by as many as 13-7, but the Royals chipped away through the rest of the frame, with Cammi Quirk dealing a service ace to tie it at 22-22.
Gwen Eustace and Altieri hammered down kills to get it to set point, then after a Scranton answer
Jackie Mitchell iced it at 25-23 with a kill.
Tied 6-6 in the third set, Salisbury netted four straight to go up 10-6 and never looked back. The Sea Gulls went on a 6-0 run later to balloon a 15-11 lead to 21-11, and after the Royals fought off a pair of match points, Altieri fed Mitchell for the winning strike to clinch it at 25-15.
Game Notes
- Gwen Eustace led the Sea Gulls up front with 12 kills on a .526 swing percentage. She also recorded three blocks (two solo).
- Jackie Mitchell notched six kills, while Kiley McTaggart added four.
- Julie Altieri dished out 23 assists. She also powered down six kills (.500) with eight digs.
- Grace Rail and Prudence Marco shared the team lead with 14 digs apiece, while Natalie Uibel chased down 10.
- Salisbury swung .216 for the match and held the Royals near zero at .041.
- The Sea Gulls recorded 11 blocks, reaching double digits in the category for the fifth time on the year.
- SU has now won seven in a row for the second time this season after starting the campaign 7-0.
The Sea Gulls will face a pair of C2C rivals in a tri-match next Saturday at Mary Washington. SU opens against UC Santa Cruz at 2 p.m., followed by a rematch with the hosting Eagles at 6 p.m. Salisbury swept the Eagles at home on Sept. 20.
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.
