HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College volleyball team continued its strong start to the 2012 season by rolling past Frostburg State University 3-0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-20) Sunday morning on the second day of the Haverford Invitational at Gooding Arena. Later in the day, the Fords (3-1) battled Juniata College, ranked No. 10 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) preseason poll, but fell 3-1 (25-13, 25-17, 18-25, 25-15) to the Eagles to suffer their first loss of the season and finish second overall in the tournament.
Haverford's offense was once again potent in the opening match as it registered a .228 hitting percentage against the Bobcats (0-4). Senior Emily Mills led the effort with 12 kills and a sterling .556 hitting percentage. Also chipping in were freshmen Nina Mutty and Keri Godbe with eight and seven kills, respectively. Classmate Olivia Walsh had another solid outing with 28 assists.
Tallying 13 digs, Madison Fuelling led an equally strong defensive effort that held the Frostburg State attack to just 20 kills during the contest. Godbe contributed nine digs while middle hitter Meg O'Day took team-high honors with three blocks. Caitlyn Droz led the Bobcats with seven kills.
The final match of the day featured a battle of the unbeatens as the Fords faced the highly-ranked Eagles with the tournament title on the line. After dropping the first two sets of the match, Haverford came roaring back in set three. Powered by a .375 hitting percentage (13 kills, one error, 32 attempts), Haverford held off Juniata to force a fourth set.
The Fords finished with a .214 hitting percentage overall against the Eagles. Mills once again took team-high honors in kills with nine. Mutty and O'Day tallied eight apiece. Fuelling led the determined defensive effort with 19 digs while Mutty and Sarah Brody added 10 each.
Brittani Young, named most valuable player of the tournament, led Juniata's tough defense with 32 digs.
Recognized for their solid play throughout the weekend, Mills and Fuelling earned all-tournament honors. Joining the Haverford duo on the all-tournament team were Amelia Kepler (Juniata), Courtney Lydick (Juniata), Kat Montemurro (Swarthmore) and Allie Coleman (Swarthmore).
The Fords head to Messiah College on Saturday, Sept. 8 as they take on the host Falcons at 12:30 p.m. and Lancaster Bible at 2:30 p.m. in non-conference action.