ALLENTOWN, Pa. – The Haverford College women's volleyball team took down Muhlenberg on Wednesday night in Allentown, pulling away 3-1 with set scores of 25-18, 19-25, 26-24 and 25-19. Haverford improves to 10-9 on the season, bringing its Centennial Conference mark to 3-3. Muhlenberg falls to 13-8, with a 4-2 mark in conference play.
Kaylynn Mayo had seven kills on just 11 total swings to hit a game-best .636. She contributed 3 block assists and a block solo. Haverford was also paced by Natalie Pisch, who registered 15 kills, and Zoe Wong, who again had 42 assists, tying her career high mark set last week against DeSales. Sara Matsumura had a career-high four service aces.
In the first set, Haverford got out to an early 14-10 lead, spurring a timeout from the Mules. The run stretched to 16-10 after an attack error from Muhlenberg's Kelly Tornetta. Haverford began to pull away from there, with a 21-16 lead causing another Mules stoppage. Mayo ended the set with a kill for a 25-18 win.
The second set went to Muhlenberg, who battled through a back-and-forth patch to even the score at 1-1. Haverford tied the score as late as 17-17, but the hosts rallied to go up 24-17 with a run that included five straight Fords errors. Haverford cut the lead to 24-19 with back-to-back kills from Julia Gallagher-Teske and Mayo, but a Valentine Courouble error equalized the match at one apiece for Muhlenberg.
The third set went to extra points as Haverford prevailed to set the tempo for the remainder of the night. A Hailey O'Mara service ace and a setter dump from Wong appeared to give Haverford all the momentum they would need to close out the set at 19-12, but Muhlenberg rallied yet again, tying the score at 21-21 with back-to-back service aces. The teams traded points from that spot forward, with Haverford finally pulling towards the finish line with a kill from Pisch and an attack error from the Mules' Shannon Hubert to take a 26-24 win.
The fourth set was relatively drama free in comparison to the third as the Fords broke a 16-16 tie with a Gallagher-Teske block and a Courouble kill to go up 18-16, forcing a Mules timeout. Haverford extended the lead with Pisch on a service run. Two aces from Pisch and another Courouble kill handed Haverford a 21-16 advantage, leading to another timeout from the Mules. A Wong kill gave the Fords the 22-16 lead before a service error ended the Ford run. Haverford was able to breeze from that point, however, taking the the match with a 25-19 fourth set victory, punctuated by a solo block from Mayo to end the contest.
Maddie Becker had a Fords-best 23 digs at the libero position. The Mules were led by Tornetta with 16 kills and Hubert with 41 assists. Elizabeth Garrison had 26 digs in a losing effort.
Haverford will take an excursion from conference play, heading to Hoboken, N.J. for the Stevens Invitational this weekend. The Fords will face off with FDU-Florham, Springfield, Montclair State and the host Ducks, starting with a matchup against Montclair State on Friday at 4:00 p.m.