BOSTON - The Haverford College volleyball team defeated Endicott College and Colby-Sawyer College by identical 3-1 scores on Sunday to finish off a perfect weekend and claim the tournament title at the Beacons Invitational hosted by the University of Massachusetts Boston.
The Fords (15-6) were the lone team from outside of the New England region to participate in the two-day tournament and they definitely made an impression on the rest of the field that featured several regionally-ranked clubs.
Facing an early start time against Endicott (13-12) after playing two marathon matches the night before, Haverford dug deep and hit .370 in the first set against the Gulls on its way to a 25-21 victory. Endicott, ranked 11th in New England, edged the Fords in set two (25-23) but Haverford closed out the victory by winning the next two sets by identical 25-18 scores.
Sophomore Keri Godbe continued her scintillating play with a team-high 24 kills. Classmates Meg O'Day and Nina Mutty chipped in with 14 kills apiece. Olivia Walsh and Abby Keller both reached double figures in assists with 28 and 22, respectively.
Haverford's defense came through with another solid team-wide effort as Godbe and Madison Fuelling led the way with 19 digs each. Mutty (18 digs) and Sarah Brody (15 digs) were also instrumental in frustrating Endicott's hitters. O'Day was a force at the net with four solo blocks.
Mackenzie Guerre led the Gulls with 14 kills while Erika Trudon registered a match-high 30 digs.
Facing their third regionally ranked team of the weekend, the Fords rallied past Colby-Sawyer (14-8) to claim a 3-1 victory (22-25, 25-22, 25-26, 25-19) and finish off the 4-0 weekend.
Godbe came through with 20 kills while O'Day and Mutty added 11 and 10, respectively. Walsh (27 assists) and Keller (17 assists) once again shared time running the offense.
Mutty (17 digs), Godbe (16 digs), Brody (13 digs), Jeanna Kenney (12 digs) and O'Day (four block assists) all played a part in another strong defensive performance.
Stephanie Vecchio paced the Chargers with 17 kills and Ally Le-Bruno topped all players with 26 digs.
The final numbers from the weekend saw Godbe total 92 kills and 79 digs. The sophomore, with 343 kills on the season, has already surpassed her freshman year performance in kills (330) with seven regular-season contests remaining. Godbe's season average of 4.4 kills per set currently ranks second in program history.
Haverford now turns its attention back to the race for a Centennial Conference playoff spot. The Fords travel to McDaniel College on Thursday for a 7 p.m. contest against the Green Terror before hosting defending conference champion Johns Hopkins University on Friday.