HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College volleyball team returns to familiar territory as it gets set to participate in its 13th consecutive Centennial Conference tournament. The fourth-seeded Fords welcome No. 5 Gettysburg College to Gooding Arena for opening round play on Thursday night.
A young Haverford squad that boasts four freshmen in the starting lineup has matured quickly throughout the 2012 campaign. Taking on national powers such as University of Chicago, Juniata College and University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point prepared the Fords well for the rigors of the Centennial. Tallying a 20-9 record overall and a 7-3 mark in the conference, Haverford was responsible for top seed Franklin & Marshall College's lone conference setback of the season.
"The team as a whole has worked hard and improved over the course of the season," reflects head coach Michele Benoit. "We have had some exciting wins and some tough loses but in each situation we have learned valuable lessons on how to get better for the next time we step on the court."
Freshman middle hitter Meg O'Day has made an immediate impact for the Fords (20-9, 7-3 CC) as she ranks first in the conference in hitting percentage (.351) and fifth in kills (3.10 per game). O'Day reached double digits in kills in 18 matches this season to help Haverford reside second in the conference rankings in kills per game (11.87).
O'Day's classmates Olivia Walsh and Keri Godbe have also made their presence felt in the lineup. Walsh leads the league in assists per match (9.39) while Godbe ranks in the top 10 of conference point producers. O'Day (326) and Godbe (314) are two of just three players to go over 300 kills in the Centennial this season.
When playoff time rolls around, every squad leans on veteran leadership and the Fords can turn to seniors Olivia Coburn-Flynn and Emily Mills. Coburn-Flynn, the program leader in block assists, ranks eighth in the conference in hitting percentage (.262) and blocks per game (0.67) while Mills, with a hitting percentage of .250, has been has been a consistent piece of Haverford's balanced offensive attack.
Exhibiting a strong commitment to defense all season, the Fords rank second in the conference in digs (16.96 per contest) and opponent's hitting percentage (.131). Sophomore libero Madison Fuelling leads the effort with 4.53 digs per game.
The most successful program in Centennial history with 11 titles in 19 years, Gettysburg (15-13, 6-4) got past visiting Haverford, 3-1, in the two squads' initial meeting of the season on Sept. 29. Courtney Cyr and Sarah Gorski supplied the offense for the Bullets with 11 and 10 kills, respectively.
Looking at the rematch with Gettysburg, Benoit knows the Fords will have to be at their best Thursday night. "Gettysburg is a great team and has a lot of offensive weapons," said Benoit. "We will definitely need to bring our best game to earn a victory for the chance to get back to the semifinals."
After Haverford took down host Swarthmore College in the opening round of the Centennial playoffs last season, it advanced to the conference semifinals for the 12th consecutive year. The Fords will look for a whole-team effort Thursday at 7:30 p.m. to keep that streak intact.
The winner of the contest will take on host and top seed F&M at noon on Saturday in the first semifinal. Johns Hopkins and Swarthmore will meet in the second semifinal of the day.