Volleyball Notches Sweep over Ursinus

Sara Hunsberger
Sara Hunsberger
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HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College volleyball team swept past visiting Ursinus on Wednesday evening at Gooding '84 Arena. Set scores were 26-24, 25-22, and 25-16. First year setter Sara Hunsberger had a standout evening with 32 assists, nine kills, nine digs and two blocks. Sara Matsumura added 28 digs while Julia Gallagher-Teske continued a strong start to her junior campaign with 11 kills. Haverford is now 6-11 on the season (1-3 CC) while Ursinus falls to 7-12 (1-5 CC).

The Fords and Bears were evenly matched in the first set, with Haverford pulling ahead 18-14 following a kill from Natalie Pisch. The Fords went up five at 20-15 following a block from Claire Nicholas and Dina Kosyagin, but Ursinus battled back to tie the score at 24-24. Julia Gallagher-Teske gave Haverford set point at 25-24, and Elena Filograna delivered a perfectly placed ace to hand Haverford the first set.

In the second, the Fords again had trouble shaking the Bears in the early goings. The visitors grabbed an early 7-2 lead and the two teams were in a heated battle before Haverford took a late 23-20 lead on the back of a Gallagher-Teske kill. The Bears again had a response, pulling to within one after a Kelly Piotrowicz score. Caroline Baldwin and Madison Adore both provided firepower to the Haverford attack, teaming up with Hunsberger for crisp kills to end the set at 25-22 in favor of the Fords.

In the third, the Fords got into a groove, pulling to an 11-4 lead and taking a 16-10 advantage following a pair of Filograna service aces. The Fords had a strong serving performance with Filograna, Matsumura and Kendall Robison all overseeing successful stretches. A Pisch kill put Haverford up 21-12, prompting a Ursinus timeout with the Bears trying to salvage something from the set. The Fords used kills from Kosyagin, Hunsberger, and Gallagher-Teske to polish off a sweep with a 25-16 victory.

Filograna had three service aces to lead the Fords in the category. Kosyagin impressed with seven kills, a service ace and three blocks. Hannah Merges had three service aces for the Bears while Emily Harris added two to a team-high eight kills. Paige DeAlba and Piotrowicz each had 11 assists. Grace Sullivan notched 17 digs.

Haverford will now return to action on Saturday with a matinee tri-match inside Gooding Arena. The first match of the day is a Centennial Conference matchup with Gettysburg at noon. The Fords will then return to face Kean at 4 p.m.