SWARTHMORE, Pa. - The Swarthmore College volleyball team put together an impressive sweep against Rutgers-Newark, 3-0, and the University Mary Washington, 3-2, on Saturday. The Garnet took care of business against the Scarlet Raiders, before showing resilience with a five-set victory over Mary Washington in the weekend finale.
Swarthmore cruised to victory against Rutgers-Newark, 3-0, to open the afternoon on a positive note. Isabel Adam enjoyed double-figure kills for the third-time this season to pace the Swarthmore attack. Madeline Mountcastle also had a well-rounded performance as she led the team with 22 assists, 11 digs and three aces.
The Garnet battled back from a crushing fourth set defeat to outlast Mary Washington in five sets. Adam had another outstanding performance with 17 kills, while Alexia Enache added 16 kills. Melissa Eyer was a rock for the Garnet on defense with a team-high 30 digs, while Hannah Humphreys and Enache had a game-high four blocks.
SWARTHMORE 3, RUTGERS-NEWARK 0
HOW IT HAPPENED
- After trailing early in the set, the Garnet put together four-unanswered points to take the lead. The Garnet never surrendered their advantage as they built on their lead with a 7-0 run. Ellie Streeper helped orchestrate the run with a pair of aces as the Garnet increased their advantage to 10 points, 20-10. Swarthmore surrendered one final point, before rallying for five-straight to take the opening stanza, 25-11.
- After another competitive start to the second set, the Garnet eventually took control midway through the stanza. Swarthmore put together a 9-2 run to take a comfortable 19-12 lead. The Garnet maintained pace and never looked back as they cruised to a 25-18 decision.
- The Garnet helped put things away early with a 5-1 opening to the third set. Rutgers closed the gap as it pulled within a point, but were unable to overtake the Garnet, who responded with a 10-2 run. Swarthmore sealed the victory with three-straight points, which was capped off by a Jalyn Miller kill, 25-13.
GARNET LEADERS
Kills: Adam 11
Aces: Mountcastle 3
Blocks: Montgomery 3
Assists: Mountcastle 22
Digs: Mountcastle 11
SWARTHMORE 3, MARY WASHINGTON 2
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Mary Washington raced out to a fast start and led the entire way in the opening set. The Eagles led 14-2 early in the stanza as they jumped the Garnet to open the match. Later in the set, Swarthmore rallied for three-straight points, but were unable to overcome its early deficit, 25-11.
- The Garnet shook off some rust with a much better start to the second set. Swarthmore prompted an early Eagles' timeout with an 8-3 run to open the stanza. The Garnet built their lead to six points as they continued to add to their fast start, 18-12. However, the Eagles put the Garnet on their heels as they pulled within three points, 21-18. Swarthmore then recaptured momentum on an Enache kill and a Mary Washington error to pull within one point of a set win. The Garnet went on to claim the set on an Enache and Angelina Heminway block, 25-22.
- Swarthmore picked up where it left off with another quick lead in the third set, 10-4. The Eagles made a late push as they climbed back into the game with a 6-1 swing to pull within two points, 21-19. The Garnet settled down out of a timeout with consecutive kills from Kiera Miles to take a three-point advantage. Swarthmore held off another late Eagles surge with a set-clinching kill from Enache, 26-24.
- Mountcastle opened the fourth set with a kill and an ace to get her team going. The Garnet then began to gain separation with three-straight points to force an early timeout, 10-6. Mary Washington responded out of the break to tie the score at 10-10, but the Garnet regained the lead with three-straight points. Mary Washington and Swarthmore exchanged late leads as both teams battled to a 24-24 tie late in the set. The Garnet had the Eagles backs against the walls with a 24-21 advantage, but surrendered five-unanswered points to head to an extra set.
- The Garnet got out in front in the decisive fifth set with an 8-5 lead. Mary Washington then tied the game with three-straight points, until an Adam kill gave the Garnet the lead, 10-9. Swarthmore built its lead back to three, before surrendering another 3-0 run to tie the game at 13-13. Miles then put the Garnet in front with a kill, while Humphreys and Enache clinched victory with a thunderous block.
GARNET LEADERS
Kills: Adam 17, Enache 16
Aces: Mountcastle 2
Blocks: Humphreys, Enache 4
Assists: Mountcastle 26
Digs: Eyer 30
UP NEXT
The Garnet (4-4) travel to Kean University to take on the Cougars and SUNY New Paltz on Friday.
