SALISBURY, Md. – For the second straight year, the Salisbury University volleyball team has won its first three matches in a row via a perfect weekend hosting the Margie Knight Classic, outlasting the Swarthmore Garnet 3-2 (25-21, 23-25, 25-11, 20-25, 15-12) and steamrolling the Mount Aloysius Mounties 3-0 (25-8, 25-17, 25-18) on Saturday afternoon at the Maggs Physical Activities Center.
MATCH ONE
The Sea Gulls needed all five sets to put away the Garnet in the opener. After SU opened up a 7-4 lead in the final frame, Swarthmore put together three in a row to tie it at 7-7 before
Emma Quandt hammered down a pair of kills to make it 9-7 Salisbury and force a timeout. The Garnet rallied for four straight to swing it in their favor at 11-9, but the Sea Gulls regrouped and went back up 12-11 on a
Kiley McTaggart kill, attack error, and block from McTaggart and
Gwen Eustace.
Swarthmore picked up the next point to draw even at 12-12. Eustace answered with a kill and
Natalie Uibel did the rest, powering down back-to-back strikes to put it in the books for the Sea Gulls, 15-12.
The fifth set stuck to the script of a close match between the two sides. After Swarthmore took an 11-9 lead in set one, Salisbury rattled off 11 in a row, with McTaggart and Quandt teaming up for five kills in the flourish that made it 20-11. The Garnet eventually closed the gap to 24-21 before a service error locked up the frame for the Sea Gulls, 25-21.
The Garnet regrouped in set two, taking leads of 14-9, 19-14, and 24-19 before eventually holding off a four-point Sea Gull rally and taking the fixture 25-23 off an attack error.
Set three belonged to the Sea Gulls from the downbeat, with the home side ballooning a 6-4 advantage to 11-4 during a long turn at the serve for
Prudence Marco. The Garnet never got closer than five points from there, and Salisbury closed the set with an 11-2 run to win it 25-11 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Swarthmore punched back with the first five points of set four, and Salisbury eventually drew even at 8-8 and 9-9 but could never get over the hump. The Garnet notched four of the final five points, riding a Madeline Mountcastle kill to lock it down 25-20 and set up the dramatic final set.
Game Notes
- Kiley McTaggart put up monster numbers at the net, landing a career-high 18 kills (.378) with six blocks (two solo).
- Gwen Eustace powered down 13 kills, while Emma Quandt added 10 kills with just one error on 27 swings (.333).
- Natalie Uibel covered the full court by posting a double-double with 12 kills and 20 digs.
- Julie Altieri assisted on 49 kills while chasing down 13 digs and landing five kills.
- Grace Rail registered 26 digs with four assists, while Prudence Marco added 19 digs and three aces.
- Salisbury swung .181 as a team with 64 kills against 30 errors.
MATCH TWO
The Sea Gulls stepped on the gas from the start against the Mounties, scoring 14 of the first 15 points in the first set with
Grace Rail dealing a hand of four aces in the run. SU later put together a seven-point flourish to go up 23-6, and
Jackie Mitchell powered down two kills to lock it down 25-8.
Early in the second set, Mitchell and
Emma Quandt teamed up for four-of-five kills during a 5-1 run that opened up an 11-5 margin for the home side. MAC steadied up and kept pace until the 18-13 mark, at which point SU netted five straight, including three aces in a row from
Julie Altieri. Quandt and
Alyssa DeWaal teamed up at the tape for a block to clinch the fixture at 25-17.
The Mounties opened the third set strong by taking a 6-1 lead. Down 9-4 later on, a kill from
Gwen Eustace ignited an 8-0 run to swing the margin to 12-9 for SU. The set stayed tight until 17-17 with Eustace again sparking a big Sea Gull flourish, this time eight of the final nine points to finish off the match.
Sophia Blaufuss landed a service ace to wrap things up at 25-18.
Game Notes
- Gwen Eustace connected for a team-high 12 kills and swung at a .556 clip while earning five block assists.
- Jackie Mitchell rose up for eight kills (.467) as part of a balanced Sea Gull attack.
- Julie Altieri dished out 23 assists with six kills, four digs, and three service aces.
- Grace Rail chased down a team-high 17 digs and dealt four of the team's 13 aces on the afternoon.
- SU notched 36 digs against 13 errors for a .271 swing percentage.
- Eustace was named MVP of the Margie Knight Classic after putting up a team-high 31 kills (.367) and 16 blocks in the three matches. Joining her on the All-Tournament Team were Kiley McTaggart (29 kills, nine blocks) and Altieri (94 assists, 28 digs, 16 kills).
The Sea Gulls will head across the Bridge to Owings Mills, Md., for the Stevenson University Quad next Friday and Saturday. Salisbury will joust with Arcadia on Friday at 7 p.m., followed by Saturday matchups with Gallaudet at 12 p.m. and hosts Stevenson at 4 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.
