SWARTHMORE, Pa.–For the seventh time in eight years, the Swarthmore College volleyball team (17-3, 7-1 CC) is headed to the Centennial Conference postseason after a 3-0 win over the Muhlenberg College Mules (15-9, 5-3 CC) on Wednesday, Oct. 19.
The Garnet, who placed 10th in the Mid-Atlantic NCAA Regional rankings earlier in the day, triumphed by a 25-23, 25-18, 25-15 score.
Sarah Wallace hit .273 with 11 kills and completed the double-double behind 11 digs. Elise Cummings also recorded 11 digs and handed out 10 assists to go with four of the team's 10 service aces. Mehra den Braven and Alice Liu combined for 16 kills and libero Sarah Girard paced the defense with 11 digs.
The Garnet got off to a slow start by conceding the first four points of the match, but recovered with a six-point run in the middle of the set, capped off by consecutive aces from Cummings. The Mules were able to save two match points before Swarthmore went up 1-0 with a kill by Olivia Leventhal.
Swarthmore improved its hitting percentage to .212 in the second set with Wallace and Liu each recording four kills. Guin Mesh had two service aces in the frame and the Garnet took advantage of two Muhlenberg ball handing errors in the final three points to gain a 2-0 lead.
Swarthmore committed only one attack error in the third set and buried 10 kills for a .273 mark. Girard recorded seven digs in the frame and the Garnet ended the match on a six-point run with another ace by Cummings to conclude the match.
The team will host the six-team Garnet Classic this weekend, beginning with matches against Scranton and DeSales on Friday afternoon. For more information on the tournament, click here.
