The Marywood Pacers hosted the FDU-Florham Devils and Hood College Blazers in a volleyball tri-match this past Saturday, The Pacers entered the day with a 5-13 record and a two-game losing streak, looking to build momentum before entering conference play.
Match 1: Vs. FDU-Florham Devils
The beginning of the first set was neck and neck. Each side went back and fourth in scoring and the Pacers found themselves tied 7-7. This soon changed when Gianna Norton began to serve. Norton got two service aces and the Pacers went up by four. The two teams continued to battle it out, and the Pacers held an 18-17 lead. Norton again recorded a pair of aces and led the Pacers to a 25-19 set win.
Marywood started out the second set hot. Pacers Libby Smith and Casey Hagerstrom gave their team a 5-0 advantage. Marywood’s domination continued and Smith’s kill gave the Pacers a 12-3 lead. The Devils weren’t giving up yet as they pulled to within 15-11. Pacers head coach Bill Schutter was unhappy with what he was seeing and called a timeout to regroup. The Devils accumulated multiple errors after the break and gave the Pacers a little breathing room. Marywood went on a 13-0 scoring run and needed one more point to win the set. The Devils’ Vanessa Freeman and Charlotte Fruscione weren’t finished yet, as they went on to score six points to narrow the deficit to three. In the closing moments, freshman Jaedyn Laws set up a play for Hagerstrom for the Pacer’s set win.
The third set started with the Pacers falling behind 6-1. In frustration, Schutter called a timeout to talk to his team. FDU remained in control after the short break and extended its lead to seven. Marywood finally got it together and cut the Devils’ lead to four. FDU then boosted its lead to 23-14. Smith recorded multiple clutch kills to keep her team in it. Ultimately, the Devils took the set off a Pacer’s error.
The Pacers looked to finish the game in the forth set, but the Devils weren’t going away easily. Both schools scored with neither team getting a significant lead. Eventually, Hagerstrom and Laws came up big as they helped the Pacers to a four-score lead. The Pacers’ supremacy continued as junior Bethany Burns helped her team get up big. Marywood’s attack would slow down and the Devil’s Gabbie Hart started a comeback. This comeback was short lived as senior Karli Boyer won the game on a spike.
Marywood top performers included Smith with 12 points, Laws with 27 assists, and Norton with five service aces.
Assistant Coach Ryan Colleran was happy after the big win.
“The team had a lot of energy,” Colleran said. “They played very well together and they communicated, which was what we were having some trouble with. They finally figured out their niche.”
Match 2: Vs. Hood College Blazers
Marywood had time to rest because the Blazers played FDU as a part of the tri-match, losing to the Devils in three sets. Now, the Pacers had a great opportunity to beat their opponent. Early in the game, the Pacers found themselves in a 4-1 deficit. Marywood bounced back as junior Mikayla Meek landed three aces. Marywood kept playing aggressively and it seemed they were running away with this set. The Blazers didn’t concede, however, as Jackie Malitzki fought back to get her squad up one. The Pacers were now down 23-20 in the set. Hood College committed multiple errors and the Pacers’ Ashley Humer gave Marywood the comeback set victory.
In the second set, whenever one side would get leverage, the other would respond with authority. It wouldn’t be until the Blazers were leading 14-13 that they jumped to a six-point advantage with Ann Ofoegbu’s multiple kills. The Pacers rallied back with Autumn Savitski taking over the game. With the game tied at 22-22,, Marywood shot themselves in the foot as two errors would cost them the set.
In the third set, the Pacers went up 9-6 early. This advantage was short-lived as the Blazers came storming back, scoring five straight points. This run would be ended by a serving error and gave Marywood an opening to fight back. The Pacers were unable to capitalize and the Blazers scored four more points. The Blazers were rolling, but numerous errors kept Marywood alive. The Pacers were still unable to make anything happen when they were given these chances, and Hood College finished the set on a 4-0 run and won it 25-15.
Marywood now had to win two straight sets to take the match. The Pacers went down 5-2 in the fourth set and had to climb out of a hole to stay alive Things turned around when Hagerstrom scored from a Laws’ assist. This fired up a 7-0 run for the Pacers. The Pacers were able to profit from the mistakes of Hood College and Meek served two aces. The Blazers recovered and tied it at 11-11. The Pacers responded with three straight points but fell short of the lead on a serving error. The game came down to the wire tied 19-19. Each team would score two apiece and make it 21-21. Anna Daley scored on a clutch ace and Smith’s error gave the win to the Blazers.
The Pacer’s top performers included Hagerstrom with nine kills, Laws with 12 assists and Meek with five service aces and four blocks.
All stats are from MarywoodPacers.com as of October 7.
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