NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Salisbury University volleyball team endured a 3-0 (25-13, 25-19, 25-9) setback against the Washington & Lee Generals in Saturday morning's neutral-site match at the Freeman Center.
Salisbury took an early 2-1 opening set lead on an
Ellie Mitchell block, but W&L scored eight of the next nine points to build a 9-3 advantage. The Sea Gulls eventually got back within 15-11, but the Generals closed on an 8-1 push, capped by an Emma Mulvaney kill, to take it 25-13.
W&L raced out to a 16-7 lead in the second set, but three straight
Kiley McTaggart kills got Salisbury back within 16-10, and the Sea Gulls later pulled within 19-16 with five straight. The Generals wouldn't let it get closer, though, netting six of the final nine and closing it out, 25-19, on a Claire Hargett kill.
The Generals ceded the first point of set three but answered with the next 13 in a row and 18 of the next 19 to go up 18-2, with Mulvaney landing the final strike to deliver W&L an easy 25-9 dub and a sweep.
GAME NOTES
- Kiley McTaggart paced the Sea Gulls up front with six kills plus two digs.
- Sophia Tapia and Amanda Meschi each put down four kills, with Tapia adding five digs, four blocks (two solo), and an ace, while Meschi posted three block assists.
- Mattox Adams ran the offense over the final two sets, dishing out nine assists to go with eight digs and two solo blocks, while Julie Altieri had five assists and five digs in the opener.
- Sophia Blaufuss paced the back line with 18 digs, three assists, and an ace, while Kyra Douglass ran down eight digs.
- The Generals outhit SU .227 to .017 and held a 7-3 edge in service aces.
- Salisbury won the blocking battle by an 8-4 margin.
The Sea Gulls will close the regular season at home on Friday against Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) foe Regent. First serve from Maggs PAC is set for 6 p.m., with a Senior Day ceremony honoring
Julie Altieri,
Kiley McTaggart, and
Elizabeth Villegas to be held before the match.
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.
