Volleyball Dealt First Defeat of 2019

Madison Adore
Madison Adore

GLENSIDE, Pa. - The Haverford College volleyball team (12-1) suffered its first defeat of the 2019 season on Friday evening, falling in four sets to Salisbury (10-2) on the first day of Arcadia's Knight Invitational. Set scores were 25-22, 17-25, 25-20, 25-10. Dina Kosyagin had 12 kills to pace Haverford, while Madison Adore had a well-rounded performance, notching seven kills and four total blocks. 

Sydney Miller tallied a match-best 30 assists, while Sara Matsumura added a match-best 29 digs, extending her streak of double-digit digs to 41 consecutive matches. Julia Gallagher-Teske recorded three total blocks, pulling to 351 career blocks, just two shy of the Haverford career record of 353, set by Jelyn Meyer '04 during the 2003 season. 

In the first set, the two sides battled for separation with Salisbury taking a 16-12 lead before a ferocious 4-0 run for the Fords tied the score at 16-16. Adore and Kendall Otridge both delivered kills in the stretch, and later teamed up for a block to prompt a timeout from the Sea Gulls. A 4-1 jaunt for Salisbury forced a Haverford timeout, and the two sides then traded jabs with Koysagin pulling the Fords to within one at 23-22 before Salisbury finished off the set win at 25-23. 

The second set saw Haverford draw level after Salisbury began the stanza on an 11-6 run. A trio of errors from the Gulls and a Keener kill helped key a stretch that saw the Fords pull ahead 16-14. Ultimately, a 5-1 run to close the set gave Haverford some newfound momentum, with Otridge tallying a block and a pair of kills in the final moments. 

In the third, Salisbury again started promisingly, taking advantage of a 11-5 run out of the gates. The Fords rallied to cut that lead to just one at 20-19 following an Otridge kill, but back-to-back Salisbury blocks forced a Haverford timeout. Amanda Chew later gave the Sea Gulls set point at 24-19, and an attack error eventually allowed Salisbury to capture the set 25-20. 

Salisbury jetted out to an 18-8 advantage in the fourth set, and Haverford struggled to keep up with the pace set by their opponents. Eventually, a match-best .294 hitting percentage for the Sea Gulls in the frame allowed Salisbury to pull away at 25-10. 

The Fords return to action in Glenside with a pair of non-conference contests on Saturday, facing off with Lycoming (11 a.m.) and UC Santa Cruz (1 p.m.) to wrap up tournament action at the Knight Invitational.