CHESTER, Pa. - The Haverford College volleyball team (1-4) fell to host Widener (2-2) by a 3-0 final score on Wednesday night inside the Schwartz Center.
Haverford was paced by Gia Frank who added nine kills. Taylor Jones and Kira Chaney also added six kills each. Kayla Chu chipped in 20 assists while Juliet Young paced a trio of Haverford players with double-digit digs (22). Sydney Rucker (13) and Claire Jordan (10) also had strong outputs.
In a topsy-turvy first set, it was the Fords taking a three-point lead at 17-14 following a kill from Jones. Haverford held a three–point cushion at 21-18 as Gia Frank pushed down a kill and went ahead 23-20 with Eliana Brown credited with the kill.
Widener was able to side out on the next point and that served as a catalyst for a 5-0 run down the stretch with Megan Barthol on the service line, taking the first set in comeback fashion.
In the second, Haverford looked to regroup and shake off the first set. Widener had other ideas as they took the momentum from that 5-0 run in the first frame and unleashed a 14-5 run to begin the second stanza. Haverford battled to within seven at 21-14, but another 4-0 run with Barthol overseeing things from the service line put the Pride up by two sets.
In the third, Widener got out on another big run, taking a 13-4 lead out of the gates. The Fords battled back with a 4-0 run to get within five, but Widener was in a comfortable spot up 20-11 following a kill from Lilyanna Martucci.
Haverford proved its mettle with a big stretch of its own as the Fords trimmed the deficit to just three with an 8-2 jaunt. Another 3-0 spurt for Haverford, aided this time by back-to-back kills from Chaney put the visitors within two at 24-22, but Shannon Toomey ended things off an assist from Barthol to take the third set and the match.
The Fords hit just .061 in the match, while the Pride converted at a .144 clip. Haverford now returns home for a second weekend of competition with a Tri-Match inside Gooding '84 Arena. The busy Saturday will see the Fords take on Messiah (11 a.m.) and Rutgers-Camden (3 p.m.)