HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College volleyball team (19-4, 6-1 CC) grabbed a four-set win over visiting Washington College (8-11, 1-6 CC) Wednesday night at Gooding '84 Arena. The Fords took the first two sets with relative ease before the Shorewomen had an answer to grab the third set. Haverford prevailed 25-19 in the final set to secure a fourth consecutive conference victory. Prior to the contest, Haverford held its annual Faculty Appreciation Night ceremony, with members of the program recognizing the Haverford faculty for their support and guidance.
Haverford had four offensive performers with double-digit kills as strong performances from Kendall Otridge (14 kills), Abby Holland (12 kills) and Taylor Jones (12 kills) joined a game-best 16 from Dina Kosyagin. Jones had a stellar night with those 12 kills against just one error on 17 swings. Sara Hunsberger tallied 31 assists while Gabrielle Fontanilla added 12 in relief off the bench. Juliet Young connected on 20 digs and Jadyn Elliott had four total blocks to pace Haverford.
The first set saw the Fords jet out to a 15-3 advantage out of the gates, with Kosyagin and Jones impressing in the early goings. Back-to-back kills from Jones put Haverford up 8-2, and a block from Elliott and Hunsberger put the bow on the stretch at 15-3. Washington got a bit closer, cutting the lead to just 15-9, but the Fords rattled off three straight points to prompt a Shorewomen timeout. Kosyagin and Otridge later collected the final two kills of the first set, handing Haverford an emphatic 25-18 win.
In the second frame, the Fords again took an early lead, up 15-9 with designs on another straightforward set victory. Kosyagin went to work with a pair of kills wrapped around Holland finding the floor with a kill of her own, and Otridge and Jones also helped pace the offense with contributions in the stretch. With the Fords up eight at 22-14, a trio of consecutive errors from the visitors gave Haverford set point before Jones put Haverford up two sets to none with a kill off an overpass.
Washington looked strong in the third set, hitting .375 to dispatch Haverford. The Fords were limited to their worst hitting percentage of the match as the blocking effort from Washington was integral in the 25-23 victory. Jenna Daunoras finished the contest with a match-best eight total blocks for WAC.
Undaunted, the Fords went back on the offensive in the fourth set, taking an early 18-10 lead after a 3-0 run with Otridge, Jones, and Holland all finding kills. Kosyagin had the final three kills of the frame for the Fords, and an attack error ended the set at 25-19, handing the Fords the match win. Haverford has not lost a match to Washington College since 1999, a stretch of 24 consecutive victories.
The Fords will now hit the road, traveling to Gettysburg on Saturday, October 23 for a 1 p.m. first serve at Bream Gym. The Fords then wrap up regular season play with a trip to Ursinus (Oct. 27) before hosting Swarthmore on Senior Day (Oct. 30).
The fourth annual @HCFords_VBall Faculty Appreciation Night was a great success! @haverfordedu #GoHCFords pic.twitter.com/0gTe8GsLi5
— Haverford College Athletics (@HCFords_Sports) October 21, 2021