SCRANTON Pa. - The Haverford College volleyball team dropped a pair of matches at the Electric City Invite on Saturday, falling to SUNY Cortland in four sets before being swept by the host Royals of Scranton in the late afternoon contest. The Fords' record now sits at 3-6 after three weeks worth of action.
Cortland 3, Haverford (25-15, 25-20, 21-25, 25-18)
In the first matchup of the day, the Fords took on Cortland, a team receiving votes in the latest AVCA poll. The Red Dragons came out firing in the first set, hitting .313 as a team while holding the Fords to a .147 clip.
Cortland got out to a 16-6 run to begin things in the first set, with Haverford struggling to contend with the Red Dragons offensive firepower. The Fords were able to climb back to within 19-10 following a kill from Kayla Chu, and Haverford got the score to 23-15 following a 3-0 run that saw Claire Jordan deliver a service ace and Kira Chaney knock down a kill. Anna Pilkey ended the set at 25-15 in favor of Cortland.
In the second, Cortland continued to cruise as the Red Dragons took a 25-20 set victory. The Fords fell behind 16-9 but rallied to trim the lead to just three at 17-14. After a bad set for Cortland put the Fords within three at 19-16, Cortland scored five of the next seven points to wrestle control of the match. Pilkey again ended the frame with a kill at 25-20.
Haverford won the third set after the two teams were deadlocked in the early goings. Cortland trailed by just one at 20-19, but a 3-0 Haverford run put the Fords up 23-19. After a Claire Jordan kill gave the Fords set point at 24-20, Gia Frank ended the frame with a kill at 25-21.
SUNY Cortland had the upper hand in the fourth set, jetting out on a 10-3 run to open things. The run eventually hit 18-8 with the Fords searching for a way to stop the Red Dragons. A block from Chaney and Taylor Jones put Haverford back within five, but Allie Sturgess and Kira Pirrera tallied key kills down the stretch to help the Red Devils clinch the set at 25-18 and the match at 3-1.
Claire Jordan, Gia Frank, and Taylor Jones each had eight kills while Kayla Chu added 23 assists. Juliet Young grabbed 22 digs. Frank and Chaney each notched two blocks. Jordan added two service aces.
Pilkey had 16 kills for SUNY Cortland, while Mckenzie Martens had a game-best 26 digs. Ryan Hinshaw tallied 23 assists for the Red Dragons.
Scranton 3, Haverford 0 (29-27, 25-21, 25-16)
The second match of the day began with a marathon first set, as Scranton outlasted the Fords, 29-27. Haverford outhit the Royals in that stretch by a margin of .286 to .229. The Fords began the frame on a 10-2 run, with Eliana Brown and Izabela Potocnjak connecting on a block to open up that advantage. Scranton responded to trim the lead to just two at 10-8, and eventually tied the score at 11-11. The two teams then traded points for the middle part of the frame, before Scranton used a 3-0 run to open up its first sizable advantage of the afternoon at 19-16. Haverford again rallied, and the two teams swapped points again, with things deadlocked at 23-23, 24-24, 25-25, 26-26, and 27-27. Eventually, a pair of back-to-back service aces from the Royals ended the marathon frame at 29-27.
The second set may have given Scranton some momentum as the Royals went ahead 10-5 and then extended that lead to 13-7. The Fords had an answer, unleashing a big response behind Juliet Young at the service line.
The blocking effort from Izabela Potocnjak and Claire Jordan put the Fords ahead 16-15, and a pair of ball handling errors helped the Fords open up a 18-15 lead. Haverford saw its advantage at 21-17 before a huge run from Scranton ended the match at 25-21 in favor of the hosts, who put together an 8-0 run to take control as Deanan Whelpley ended the frame with a block.
Scranton went ahead 11-5 to begin the third frame, and eventually opened up a 19-9 advantage that was tough to overcome for the Fords. Haverford got back within seven at 23-16, but a block from Erin Keaveney and Gwen Koester ended the set at 25-16, giving Scranton a 3-0 match victory.
Jordan and Jones each had 10 kills, while Young added 14 digs. Chu (15 assists) and Dasha Igonin (14 assists) helped the passing effort while Potocnjak added five total blocks. Stephanie Margolies had a match-best 13 kills for Scranton, while Cammi Quirk (26 assists) and Maddie Forry (10 digs) were other key contributors for the Royals.
Volleyball now returns to action on Thursday, September 21, heading to Elizabethtown for a 7:30 p.m. first serve against the Blue Jays as non-conference action continues.