HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College volleyball team (1-3) returned to Gooding '84 Arena for the second day of Haverford Invitational action on Saturday, dropping a pair of matches to Coast Guard (3-1) and Lebanon Valley (1-3), each by 3-1 final scores.
Juliet Young was named to the Haverford Invitational All-Tournament team after tallying 87 digs and adding 18 assists for the Fords this weekend.
Coast Guard 3, Haverford 1 (25-23, 26-24, 25-17, 25-12)
Going up against a formidable Coast Guard squad that went 2-0 to begin action, Haverford battled tough in the first set, fighting back from a 16-10 deficit to get right back into things down just two at 18-16 following a block from Gia Frank and Kayla Chu.
The blocking effort remained a vital part of Haverford's success as Claire Jordan and Taylor Jones teamed up to put Haverford within three at 22-19. A late run prompted a Coast Guard timeout as Dasha Igonin fed Jones to cut the lead to 23-20.
Sarah Somer and Allie Wildsmith kept Coast Guard in the lead with late kills to close out the set, but Haverford responded in the second stanza, as the back-and-forth battle was tied 191-9 following a 3-0 Coast Guard run. Haverford fell behind 21-19, but Jordan tied things at 21-21 before a service ace gave Haverford the lead. Coast Guard again went ahead briefly, but a 3-0 run down the stretch gave Haverford new life with Kayla Chu delivering a service ace before Frank and Izabela Potocnjak ended the frame with a block at 26-24.
Coast Guard went ahead 17-13 in the third frame, but Haverford was within two following a solo block from Eliana Brown. Kaela France had consecutive service aces in the closeout moments to put her squad up 2-1 in the match with a 25-17 set win.
In the fourth, the Bears came out swinging, jetting out to a 16-6 lead that Haverford could not climb back from. Coast Guard hit .345 in the frame, holding Haverford to just .094.
Claire Jordan had 10 kills to lead Haverford, while Kayla Chu (17 assists) and Dasha Igonin (14 assists) each notched double-digit totals in that category. Young added 23 digs while Potocnjak (six blocks), and Frank (five blocks) continued an impressive weekend.
Lebanon Valley 3, Haverford 1 (25-18, 25-14, 17-25, 25-22)
In the late afternoon match, Haverford was searching for answers against a potent Lebanon Valley offense. The visitors took an early 10-5 lead behind a strong stretch from Taylor McInerney, who frustrated Haverford all afternoon. LVC was ahead by seven at 19-19, but the Fords were able to mount a comeback to get within four at 20-16 after a Claire Jordan service ace.
Unfortunately for the Fords, McInerney was in perfect position to deliver the final two kills of the stanza and send LVC to a 25-18 set win.
In the second, Haverford fell behind as Olivia Nace logged a solid turn at the service line and the blocking effort of the Dutchmen stepped up for three blocks in the stretch of five points. With a 13-7 lead in hand, LVC continued to keep the pressure on the Fords, taking a 19-10 lead behind McInerney and cruising to a 25-14 victory.
The third frame went to the Fords as Haverford stole some of that momentum that LVC displayed in the early goings. With things deadlocked at 10-10, Kayla Chu took over at the service stripe and tallied a service ace wrapped around a pair of huge blocks from Frank and Potocnjak as Haverford went ahead 16-10. The lead stretched to 20-12 with another Potocnjak kill, and the hosts grabbed the set 25-17 as Caroline Lucas found the floor with a kill to deny the sweep.
In the fourth, it was against Lebanon Valley taking the early lead, getting out to an 8-3 cushion. McInerney again was an enforcer offensively before three consecutive service aces from LVC hampered Haverford's comeback bid. Eventually, the Fords were able to tie things at 18-18, but McInerney had a strong service turn and a 3-0 LVC run ended the match.
Jordan had 10 kills and 14 digs to pace the Fords while Potocnjak had eight kills.Young tallied 14 digs and Frank had another strong performance with seven blocks.
McInerney finished with 33 kills, more than half of the 55 total from the visitors.
Haverford now faces a midweek test at local foe Widener, with first serve in Chester, Pa. slated for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, September 6.
The Fords won't be away from home competition for long, however, as an early season tri-match dots the landscape of the second weekend with Haverford welcoming in Messiah and Rutgers-Camden to campus for a day of volleyball action on Saturday, September 9. Matches will begin at 11 a.m.