Volleyball closing in on A-10 tourney

As the season nears its end, the women’s volleyball team played three games over the course of six days, with two of the games being on the road. A strong team effort, solid hitting and defense helped the Rams went 2-1 during the week.

The Rams started their journey on Nov. 6, when they traveled to Pittsburgh to take on Duquesne University; the Rams won the match 3-1. After dropping the first set (25-1), the Rams regrouped to come back with convincing wins in the next three sets, (25-14), (25-16) and (25-19).

The match was a team effort. Senior outside hitter, Kalah Jones led the team with 17 kills and seven digs. Freshman middle blocker and Atlantic 10 Co-Defensive Player of the Week Tori Baldwin added six kills and a game high seven blocks. Freshman outside hitter Sahbria McLetchie ended the match with 16 kills and six digs. Sophomore libero Rebekah Strange helped set–up her teammates for kills by digging a game-high 21 balls.

On Nov. 8, the Rams traveled to Philadelphia to take on La Salle University; the Rams won the match 3-0. Again, teamwork gave the Rams the competitive advantage. The Rams won two close sets (25-20), (25-22) and the last set (25-15). Freshman setter Indigo Thompson had 31 assists. 

 Once more, Kalah Jones had a game high with 15 kills and she added three digs. Sahbria McLetchie was right behind Jones with 14 kills and six digs. The Rams defense also helped the team overtake La Salle. Rebekah Strange contributed 11 digs. Tori Baldwin added 5 blocks for the Rams.

The Rams finished the week at home against the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) on November 11. The Rams fell to UMES 3-1, winning the first set 25-16, and losing the next three in close sets (25-21), (25-20) and (25-22).

Kalah Jones continued her solid game play with 13 kills. McLetchie also added 12 kills and 9 digs. Baldwin had six blocks and accounted for two solo blocks. Strange added a game high 22 digs, however, the Rams strong defense was not enough to overcome UMES’s strong hitting from freshman outside hitter Lucia Babic, who had a game high 14 kills and 16 digs. UMES was also helped by another freshman outside hitter, Zuzana Ondruskova, who registered 12 kills and 14 digs.

The loss to UMES snapped the Rams’ five–game winning streak.  Before the loss, the Rams had previously won the last seven of eight games. The Rams hope to bounce back as they finish the regular season with two final home games. The A-10 tournament begins Nov. 20 in Washington D.C. The Rams are currently ranked sixth in the conference.

Article by:

Erika Robinson, Contributing Writer