COLLEGEVILLE, PA. – The Ursinus College women's volleyball team fell to Johns Hopkins on Saturday afternoon from Helfferich Hall in straight sets (25-13,25-13, 25-15).
With the loss, the Bears fell to 11-5 overall and 1-3 in Centennial Conference action, meanwhile the Blue Jays improved to 10-7 on the season and 5-0 and conference action.
Senior
Katie Cressman finished with a game-high 12 kills while adding three digs. Sophomore
Caroline Sherman posted six kills and three digs, while senior
Luca Walborn finished with a team-high 10 assists.
Ursinus jumped out to an early 5-4 lead in the first set after Cressman and Sherman each posted a kill. The Blue Jays responded with a 9-1 run and controlled a 13-6 lead after a trio of errors from the home squad. The Bears scored three of the next four points behind kills from Walborn and Sherman made the score 14-8. The Blue jays bounced back with a 9-1 run and controlled 22-9 lead, before a Cressman kill stopped the run. Cressman earned two more kills in the set, but Johns Hopkins closed out the set after a kill from Simone Adam.
In the second set, the Blue Jays jumped out to a 10-6 lead before a kill from Sherman cut the deficit to just three. Johns Hopkins rallied off eight consecutive points and extended their lead to 18-7. Each team traded points before Cressman picked up a kill after converting on a pass from Walborn. The Blue Jays closed out the set with a kill from Chidinma Onukwugha for a 25-13 set victory.
Ursinus continued battling early in the final set regaining a 8-6 lead, after a kill from
Gabby McGinn. Back-to-back points from the Blue Jays tied the match at ten a piece, but a kill from Cressman gave the Bears a one-point edge. Cressman continued her excellence collecting two more kills with the last one cutting their deficit to three. Hopkins closed out the match with seven consecutive points for a 25-15 set and match victory.
The Blue Jays finished with an impressive .500 hitting percentage while holding a 9-3 edge in aces. Onukwugha led the Blue Jays with five aces and two blocks, while Helena Swaak finished with a game-high 24 assists.
The Bears will return to action on Wednesday as they host Bryn Mawr for a Centennial Conference matchup at 7pm.
