ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – The Haverford College volleyball team had four players record at least 10 kills as it defeated the Elizabethtown Blue Jays, 3-1 (25-13, 23-25, 25-13, 25-18), at the Daubert Gymnasium in non-conference action on Wednesday night.
Senior Meg O'Day's match-high 15 kills led the way while senior Keri Godbe recorded 14 kills, freshman Natalie Pisch added in 13 and junior Valentine Courouble had 12. It's the first time that Haverford had four players score at least 10 kills since the Fords' 3-2 win over the Franklin and Marshall Diplomats on Oct. 6, 2012. In that contest, O'Day (13), Godbe (13), senior Nina Mutty (10) and Emily Mills '13 (10) helped the Fords' to the five-set victory.
Haverford had a scorching .463 attack percentage to blitz Elizabethtown in the first set. The Fords went on a 13-4 stretch and never looked back. The final two points of the set were kills by Pisch, who set a season high for kills in the match.
Elizabethtown changed its fortune in the second stanza. The Blue Jays held the lead for the majority of the set, leading by as many as five at 17-12. A kill by Godbe and back-to-back aces by O'Day quickly cut the Fords' deficit to two, before a kill for the Blue Jays set the score at 18-15. Three straight errors by the home team gave Haverford new life, tying the contest at 18-all. After an Elizabethtown timeout, the two teams exchanged multi-point rallies to put the Fords in front, 21-20. The Blue Jays countered with three straight points to take a 23-21 lead and kept the Fords at bay the rest of the set to tie the match at one.
The Fords got back on track thru another impressive win in set three. With 12 kills and just two errors in 29 attempts (.345), Haverford's 15-6 run in the set helped it cruise to a 2-1 set lead. O'Day and Pisch's four kills in the set paced the Fords' offense.
Allowing the Blue Jays to score six of the first seven points in the fourth set did not faze Haverford. The Fords tied the match at six-all and once again at 10-all before taking a 12-10 lead. The back and forth continued as the teams combined to tie four more times. Back-to-back kills by Pisch and a service ace by Courouble put the Fords ahead 19-16 and led to an Elizabethtown timeout. Pisch scored the first point after the stoppage before the Blue Jays finally got on the board again, making the score 20-17. Haverford ended the match, scoring five of the next six points to take the four-set victory.
O'Day's .481 attack percentage led all players with at least five kills. Godbe posted a double-double with 13 digs while senior Jeanna Kenney had a team-high 16 digs. The Fords recorded six service aces, a solo block from junior Kaylynn Mayo and 10 block assists. Sophomore Zoe Wong had 23 assists while senior Olivia Walsh put up 19 assists in the victory. Mackenzie Gardner had 10 kills for the Blue Jays in the loss.
The volleyball team improved to 4-2 overall while Elizabethtown fell to 3-2 this year. The Fords have won three straight and seven out of nine against the Blue Jays dating back to 2007. Head coach Michele Benoit's squad will now travel to Kean for a tri-match with St. Lawrence on Saturday (Sept. 12). Haverford will take on Kean at 11 a.m. and St. Lawrence at 1 p.m.