Seahawks Sweep Mary Washington for 12th Straight Win
St. Mary's City, Md. - A balanced Seahawk attack helped the St. Mary's College of Maryland volleyball team pick up its 12th consecutive victory with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-19) sweep of the University of Mary Washington in Capital Athletic Conference action Thursday night.
Senior middle blocker Becca Tursell (Ellicott City, Md./Glenelg) and outside hitters Sarah Gregorini (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial), and Katie Obal (Olney, Md./Sherwood) each tallied six kills to pace the Seahawks (13-1, 3-0 CAC) to an undefeated mark in conference play. Tursell also finished with four total blocks (2 solo, 2 assists).
St. Mary's opened up with a 3-0 run in the first set before a 4-1 Eagle run tied up the set. After that point, Mary Washington (9-7, 2-2 CAC) stayed within two points before a 9-5 spurt sparked the Seahawks to pull away for the 25-18 win. Gregorini paced the Hawks with three kills, while Obal and Tursell each had two.
In the second set, Gregorini, Obal, and junior outside hitter Katie Ewing (Gaithersburg, Md./Quince Orchard) each notched two kills in leading SMCM to the 25-14 victory. The closest Mary Washington came in this game was 4-3 following a kill by senior outside hitter Kelley Hueber (Grapevine, Texas/Grapevine).
The final set was the closest of the three as the Eagles clawed their way out of a 17-10 deficit to pull within 21-19 behind the efforts of junior outside hitter Anne Lutkenhaus (Richmond, Va./Douglas Freeman) who registered three kills. However, back-to-back kills from Tursell and Ewing set up match point which was won following a block solo by Tursell.
Setters Jenn Feldmann (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial) and Megan Graydon (West Friendship, Md./Glenelg) combined for 24 assists, while sophomore outside hitter Claire Kodan (Olney, Md./Sherwood) registered a match-high 12 digs.
The Eagles were led in the loss by Lutkenhaus' 10 kills, while freshman setter Katie Shiflett (Weyers Cave, Va./Fort Defiance) put up a match-best 16 assists. Junior libero Lindsey Scott (Altavista, Va./Altavista) paced the squad with eight digs.
St. Mary's will be back in action tomorrow when the Seahawks commence competition at the two-day Mizuno Blue Jay Classic hosted by Elizabethtown College in Elizabethtown, Pa. SMCM will kick off the tournament against Widener University at 2:30 followed by a match-up with Lycoming College at 4:30.
