MEDFORD, Mass. – The Salisbury University volleyball team opened the Tufts Invitational on Friday at Cousens Gym with a pair of tough results, falling to the second-ranked Trinity (Texas) Tigers, 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 25-19), before dropping a tight battle with the Bowdoin Polar Bears, 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-16).
MATCH ONE
The opening set was a back-and-forth classic, with the Sea Gulls and Tigers battling through 12 ties as the fixture went past regulation. Down 21-19,
Amanda Meschi got SU the serve back, and three straight
Sophia Tapia aces gave the Gulls a 23-21 cushion. After Trinity answered to tie it back up at 23-23,
Kiley McTaggart landed a kill to put SU at set point, 24-23. The Tigers locked in from there, though, netting four of the final five points and escaping with a 27-25 win on a kill from Connelley McWilliams.
Trinity conceded the first point of the second set before seizing control and building a quick 13-3 lead. Salisbury eventually whittled it down to 16-12 but could get no closer, and Taylor Starr put it away for the Tigers with a kill at 25-17.
The Tigers raced to a 7-2 cushion early in the third, but the Sea Gulls answered with four straight points to trim it to 7-6. The two sides traded blows from there, with SU keeping pace and trailing only 22-19 late, but TU registered the final three points and put the sweep in the books, 25-19, on an attack error.
Game Notes
- Sophia Tapia provided a spark at the service line with five aces, tying her career high. She also landed seven kills and notched a pair of block assists.
- Kiley McTaggart matched Tapia with a team-high seven kills to go along with seven digs and two blocks.
- Elizabeth Gordon was the Sea Gulls' most efficient hitter, landing six kills at a .556 clip.
- Julie Altieri finished with 23 assists and nine digs.
- Annabelle Weis ran down a team-leading eight digs.
- The Tigers out hit SU .240 to .114 and controlled the front lines with a 9-3 blocking advantage.
- The fixture was a rematch of last season's NCAA Tournament Second Round matchup, played four miles south of Tufts at MIT. TU also won that match 3-0 on the way to a Final Four appearance.
MATCH TWO
The Sea Gulls raced out to an 8-3 cushion in the opening set, but Bowdoin answered with a 5-0 run to tie it at 8-8. The two teams danced through the rest of the fixture, with SU flipping a 21-20 hole to a 24-21 lead late. BC clawed back two points to get within one, but
Julie Altieri set up
Amanda Meschi for the kill to give the Gulls a 25-23 triumph.
The second set proved just as tight, with the teams battling out 13 ties before the Polar Bears finally eked it out. Tied at 20-20, Bowdoin closed on a 5-of-6 spurt, capped by a Cameron Shelly ace, to even the match, 25-22.
Bowdoin bolted out of the gate with seven straight points to open the third, forcing the Sea Gulls to play catchup for the entire frame. Down 21-14, SU closed the gap to 24-22, thanks in part to four strikes from Meschi, but a service error sealed it for the Bears at 25-22.
After trading the first 10 points of set four, BC blew the doors off with an 11-1 run to go up 16-6 and never looked back. SU never got closer than eight the rest of the way and Hannah Woolley registered the kill to salt it away, 25-16.
Game Notes
- Amanda Meschi paced the Sea Gulls with a career-high 16 kills at a .308 clip, plus seven digs.
- Kiley McTaggart added 10 kills, reaching the 1,000-kill plateau for her career with a strike in the fourth set.
- Sophia Tapia landed eight kills, while Kyra Douglass added six of her own.
- Julie Altieri dished out 18 assists, while Mattox Adams matched her with 18 helpers in her first collegiate action.
- Sophia Blaufuss reeled in a career-high 24 digs to pace the back line.
- Bowdoin out-hit Salisbury .232 to .207 and landed 11 service aces to SU's four.
The Sea Gulls will close out the Tufts Invitational against the 21st-ranked hosting Jumbos on Saturday afternoon, with first serve from Cousens Gym set for 1:30 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.
