HAVERFORD, Pa. – Madison Fuelling help spark a late rally for the home team but Haverford College eventually fell, 3-1, to visiting Swarthmore College in a Centennial Conference regular season finale Saturday afternoon in Gooding Arena.
Trailing 2-1 in games and behind 21-16 in the fourth when Fuelling stepped behind the service line following a kill by teammate Emily Mills, Haverford (13-13, 6-4 CC) reeled off six more points to forge a 22-21 lead over the Garnet (23-6, 7-3). Swarthmore took back the lead with three straight points but the Fords evened the score at 24-24 before the visitors closed out the game and match with a 25-24 win.
The Fords dropped the first game, 25-22, but rebounded for a 25-23 win in the second. Swarthmore rolled to a 25-15 win in the third then broke out quickly in the fourth before Fuelling and the Fords battled back.
Senior Laura Ramos, making her final appearance on the Gooding Arena floor, led the Fords' attack with 12 kills and added one service and 14 digs. Haley Lowrance chipped in with 10 kills and nine digs and led set up the Haverford attack with 32 set assists. Defensive specialist Sarah Brody led the team in digs accumulating 22 in the four-game match.
Swarthmore's Kathryn Montemurro posted a match-high 14 kills to lead the Garnet attack and teammate Genny Pezzola added a match-leading 23 digs on the defensive side of the box score.
Along with Ramos, Jenine Abbassi and Caitlyn Tranquillo were also honored with a pre-match ceremony on Senior Day.
The volleyball victory by Swarthmore added a point for the Garnet in the 2011-12 Hood Trophy competition. Haverford, after finishing with higher places than Swarthmore at the Centennial cross country championships earlier in the day, leads the competition by a count of 2-1.
Haverford will now head to Swarthmore, Pa., Wednesday night to take on the Garnet in the opening round of the 2011 conference tournament. Host Swarthmore, by virtue of Saturday's win, earned the fourth seed while the Fords enter the league's postseason with the No. 5 seed.