Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Swarthmore volleyball team (1-1) opened the 2012 campaign with two very competitive matches, defeating Frostburg State 3-2 and dropping a 3-0 close battle to preseason tenth-ranked Juniata at the opening day of the Haverford Invitational.
Swarthmore defeated Frostburg State in the opening five set match (25-15, 21-25, 17-25, 25-13, 15-8). Juniata defended their national ranking as they swept the Garnet (22-25, 22-25, 18-25) in a high competitive atmosphere.
Match 1
The Garnet took a while to warm up in the first set against Frostburg as the two teams stayed neck-and-neck. With a 13-10 lead, Swarthmore began to distance itself from the Bobcats en route to a 25-15 set win. Danielle Sullivan led the squad with eight kills, while Allie Coleman added eight assists to open the first set of the season.
In the second set, Frostburg managed a 10-7 lead before a much needed timeout by the Garnet to refocus. This sparked a four-point run for the Garnet to take the lead, 11-10. But the advantage was short-lived as the Bobcats regained control to capture a 25-21 set victory. Frostburg led the entire third set allowing the Swarthmore squad just 17 points.
Brone Lobichusky totaled seven kills in sets two and three to lead the team.
The fourth set started on a high note for the Garnet, as they gathered a 6-2 lead with two big kills from Sullivan. During Lobichusky's two-ace service slate, the Garnet built a commanding 16-6 lead. After racking up seven kills in the set, Sullivan closed out the fourth with a service ace to force the deciding fifth set.
Swarthmore continued their momentum into the final set defeating the Bobcats 15-8. Five players tallied kills and Kat Montemurro picked up a service ace. The winning point was celebrated with a huge block from Danielle Delpeche and Sullivan.
Match 2
Climbing back from a 7-0 Juniata run to open the first set, Swarthmore pulled within four (12-8) with a electrifying block from Lobichusky and Sullivan. After the Eagles re-opened their advantage with a 4-0 scoring run, two attacking errors in a row by Juniata and a pair of Coleman aces cut the lead back to four.
Juniata continued to commit costly errors later in the set to shrink their lead. Swarthmore handled two huge points with a block assist from Lobichusky and Coleman followed by a lightning fast kill from Montemurro to tie the set at 22. The rush was not enough to hold off Juniata who prevailed 25-22.
The second set started much like the first with a run by the Bobcats, but the Garnet cut the momentum quicker this time around after an early regroup. The two teams would trade points, yielding a small scoring margin for the remainder of the set. Swarthmore held their first lead at 19-18 with a kill from Delpeche and at one point had a two-point lead (20-18). The Bobcats tied up the set at 20 with a block and gathered two more points off of Garnet errors. Montemurro tied the set at 22 with a service ace and the Garnet's final point of the set.
Juniata controlled the third set in convincing fashion with multiple scoring runs. The Garnet had a 5-0 run of their own in the middle of the set and came within two points (14-12), but could not gather enough strength to force a fourth set.
Swarthmore will close out the Haverford Invitational with two more matches on Sunday, facing Widener and Susquehanna at 10am and 2 pm, respectively.
