Coming off a loss to Stevenson University last Wednesday by three sets to none, the Elizabethtown College women’s volleyball team was looking to bounce back. Friday night marked the team’s Homecoming game against the St. Mary’s College Seahawks, which also was the Jays’ Dig Pink night, which raised money for breast cancer research.
The team came out focused and started the game by scoring, going up by as many as double digits in the first set. With kills from six different players early in the game, it seemed that the Blue Jays had firm control on the game. The Blue Jays capitalized on many of the attacking errors made by St. Mary’s as the Jays won the first set 25-19.
The Blue Jays came out of the gates again with another fast start in game two as they went up 15-9 early off, two of St. Mary’s 11 errors in the second set. Behind the leadership of seniors Lindsay Palm and Holly Bubb, the Blue Jays kept bringing the heat with their fierce attack and won the second set 25-16, taking a commanding two sets to none.
After intermission, the Seahawks came out with more intensity than the Blue Jays as they won in a close 30-28 third set and 25-23 in another tightly contested fourth set, setting up for what would be a hard fought fifth set.
Early on in the fifth set, the Blue Jays showed the intensity they played in the first two sets as they led early six to three behind two kills from sophomore Taylor Beck, first-year Juliana Mowen and Bubb.
St. Mary’s would rally back to tie the game up at seven points apiece and take the lead off four straight points off the serve from first-year Mollie Johnson. Their serves proved to make the difference for the Seahawks as four straight serves from senior Dani Thorne gave St. Mary’s the fifth and final set of the game.
Bubb knows the lack of intensity shown for the third and fourth set cost them the win. “We were not able to find the energy we had earlier in the evening and sadly could not win the next three sets. Five game matches are always exciting, but they are usually more exciting when we are the team that has come back to win sets three and four, not the other team,” Bubb said.
Senior captain Meg Kenneweg believes her team fought hard through the third and fourth sets, but the team was not able to capitalize on an early two-set lead. “After the break between the second and the third game our dynamic somehow changed. We did fight but we needed to be able to finish,” Kenneweg said.
The Blue Jays headed into Tuesday’s game against Alvernia University with a 5-2 record in conference play and in third place with a one-game lead over Widener University. Although Alvernia’s overall record may not be intimidating, the Blue Jays needed to keep their focus up as the Crusaders had won two straight games, including a five-set match over Commonwealth Conference foe Arcadia University.
Kenneweg knew that this game was crucial for the Blue Jays late in the season. “It is a conference game and we need to get a win. Not having won since fall break we need a confidence boost to be able to get ready for Messiah [College] on Thursday and then Eastern [University] on Saturday,” Kenneweg said.
Bubb believed that the key to the game would be bringing the same intensity they did in the first two sets against St. Mary’s. “We need to start off strong with high energy just as we did against St. Mary’s. If we do that, play the game we know how to play, and have fun with it, Elizabethtown volleyball will beat Alvernia,” Bubb said.
During the match, Etown brought the intensity they needed, and the Blue Jays were able to clinch a playoff spot with a 3-0 win over Alvernia. Sophomore Kelci Scannapieco led the team with ten kills.