OWINGS MILLS, Md. – The Salisbury University volleyball team extended its winning streak to six matches with perfect turn at the "Battle of the SUs" tri-match, topping the Stevenson Mustangs 3-1 (25-13, 15-25, 25-14, 25-9) before sweeping the Susquehanna River Hawks 3-0 (25-20, 25-15, 28-26) on Saturday at Owings Mills Gymnasium.
MATCH ONE
Julie Altieri served the first eight points of the match to stake the Sea Gulls to an 8-0 lead. Stevenson finally got on the board with two straight but never got closer than that, and Salisbury closed it out with four straight as
Elizabeth Villegas closed out an ace to make it 25-13.
The second set opened tight with the teams tied at 8-8 before the Mustangs rattled off six in a row to go up 14-8. Salisbury settled down and soon answered with three in a row to get within 16-12, but Stevenson locked in and closed on a 9-3 run, sealing it off at 25-15 after a Sea Gull attack error.
Salisbury reasserted control in the third, taking 10-of-13 early to flip a 2-2 tie into a 12-5 lead. Stevenson then scored five of the next six to get within 14-11, but
Isard Bernades bookended a five-point surge with a kill and an ace to rebuild the margin to 19-11. The Gulls closed it out soon after, with a kill from
Kiley McTaggart capping another 5-0 run to ice it 25-14.
The fourth set was never in doubt as Salisbury scored the first 10 points, topped off by another strike from McTaggart. The Gulls built the lead as large as 18-5 after a tandem block from
Sophia Tapia and
Ellie Mitchell, and
Elizabeth Gordon eventually dealt the clinching blow with an ace, wrapping it up at 25-9.
GAME NOTES
- Kiley McTaggart led the Sea Gulls with 14 kills at a .333 clip, adding seven digs and five blocks (one solo).
- Amanda Meschi added 12 kills (.273) to go along with two digs and two blocks.
- Elizabeth Gordon was nearly automatic at the net, blasting 10 kills against no errors for a .769 efficiency. She also rose up for a team-high eight blocks, including three solo stuffs.
- Elizabeth Villegas (four) and Isard Bernades (three) combined for seven of the Sea Gulls' 11 service aces on the day.
- Julie Altieri orchestrated the attack with 37 assists, adding 10 digs and two aces for her sixth double-double of the season (55th career).
- Sophia Blaufuss paced the defense with a team-high 22 digs and four assists.
- Salisbury outhit Stevenson .311 to .070 and swung .500 in the decisive fourth set. The Gulls also outblocked the Mustangs 12-8.
MATCH TWO
Salisbury held a narrow 9-8 early in the first set before the Sea Gulls took control with a 6-0 run, using three
Elizabeth Gordon kills in quick succession to up 15-8. The River Hawks pushed back with five-of-six to get within 16-13, but the Gulls answered with a 7-2 push to make it 23-15. The Hawks eventually narrowed the margin to four but it was too little, too late, and an attack error salted it away for Salisbury, 25-20.
The second set rhymed with the first as the Sea Gulls took a 8-7 lead and scored the next six and 10-of-12 to balloon it to 18-9. Up 23-15 later,
Mattox Adams fed
Ellie Mitchell for a kill, then
Sophia Blaufuss landed an ace to clinch it at 25-15.
The third set was a back-and-forth affair with neither side able to get more than four points clear of the other. With Salisbury leading 21-19 late, the River Hawks rattled off six-of-nine, getting to set point at 25-24 on a kill from Makenzie Cober. The Sea Gulls stayed alive with an
Amanda Meschi kill, then after Salisbury went up 26-25 and Susquehanna answered to tie,
Sophia Tapia blasted a kill and the Hawks misfired one more time, allowing the Gulls to secure the sweep at 28-26.
GAME NOTES
- Kiley McTaggart again paced the Sea Gulls with 13 kills (.333) while also notching two service aces and a solo block.
- Elizabeth Gordon put up machine-like numbers yet again, powering down 11 kills at a .643 clip.
- Amanda Meschi chipped in eight kills (.471) with three digs, while Ellie Mitchell added seven kills and four digs.
- Julie Altieri dished out 31 assists and added 10 digs, her second double-double of the day and seventh of the season (56th career).
- Sophia Blaufuss ran down 15 digs to compliment four assists and an ace.
- Salisbury swung .365 as a team, clearing .400 in the second and third sets, while holding Susquehanna to a .171 efficiency.
The Sea Gulls will head to Glassboro, N.J., on Saturday, Oct. 17, for a pair of fixtures against Brooklyn College at 1 p.m. and hosts Rowan at 3 p.m.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with affiliate membership in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (football, men's & women's swimming), Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse), State University of New York Athletic Conference (field hockey), and Colonial Women's Golf Conference (women's golf). With over 500 student-athletes in 23 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the nation's 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 won a combined 23 team national championships, 26 individual national championships, and 211 conference championships, and have produced 54 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.
