Site: Fayetteville, N.C.
Scores:
Salem 3, Mary Baldwin 0 (25-20, 25-13, 25-18)
Salem 3, Methodist 0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-20)
Records: Salem (15-6, 8-3 USA South) / Mary Baldwin (2-21, 1-8 USA South) / Methodist (10-12, 5-7 USA South)
Up Next: Salem vs. Roanoke (Oct. 17 / 6 p.m. / Varsity Gym)
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The Salem volleyball team posted a pair of three-set wins against USA South Conference foes Mary Baldwin (25-20, 25-13, 25-18) and Methodist (25-20, 25-19, 25-20) on Saturday afternoon in Fayetteville and became just the second team in program history to win at least 15 matches in a single season.
The 2022 unit joined the 2017 team, which finished 21-12, as the only other team in Salem volleyball history to claim at least 15 victories in a season. The current Spirits also became the fifth team to win at least nine three-set matches in a season, tying themselves alongside the 2014 and 2018 teams for fifth-most. Only the 2017 and 2016 teams have more, with 12 and 10 three-set wins, respectively.
Among the standout individual performers on Saturday were Valeria Rosa Lopez and Aspen Bradley, who combined for 24 kills apiece in each match. Lopez also emerged with 25 digs against both Mary Baldwin and Methodist, while Ella Brameus and McKenzie Tullock combined for 24 digs apiece in Fayetteville, N.C.
SALEM 3, MARY BALDWIN 0
Salem completed the season sweep of Mary Baldwin with a 25-20, 25-13, 25-18 behind a pair of double-digit kill performances by Valeria Rosa Lopez (16) and Aspen Bradley (13). Bradley topped all individual players with a .571 attack percentage, committing just one miscue in 21 total attacks, while Lopez posted a .448 attack percentage with just three errors in the match.
The Spirits, who were led by setters Ashlyn Wood (19 assists) and Ashlee Peek (12), ended with 44 total kills in 99 attacks, posting a .343 attack percentage. It marked the sixth time this season that Salem posted at least a .300 attack percentage and first time against a USA South Conference program since its last meeting with the Fighting Squirrels on Sept. 24th.
The defensive efforts of Lopez (13 digs), Ella Brameus (12 digs) and McKenzie Tullock (12 digs) highlighted the back row. The front row tandem of Anna Rymer, who finished with two assisted blocks, along with Brooklyn Snow and Lopez led Salem to four assisted blocks. That defensive effort limited the Fighting Squirrels offense to just 32 kills and a .168 attack percentage.
FIRST SET RECAP
Salem's offensive was firing on all cylinders in the opening set, closing with 12 kills in 28 attempts and a .321 attack percentage. Breaking a five-all deadlock with a slam from Lopez, Salem put together a 10-3 run that included two kills each from Brameus and Lopez, establishing a 15-8 advantage. Leading 18-12, following kills from Lopez and Bradley, Salem witnessed its lead dwindle to one, 18-17, after four straight kills by Sydney Clarke. The Spirits took advantage of a Lopez slam and service ace along with three unforced Mary Baldwin errors to earn the win.
SECOND SET RECAP
The second set began in similar fashion to the first with Salem establishing a 10-6 lead on a slam from Bradley following a pass by Peek. The Spirits were unable to separate themselves by more than four points from Mary Baldwin until Tullock took over in serve and a series of kills from Bradley, Lopez and Rymer extended the margin to 17-11. Peek's service game and Snow's two kills helped Salem stretch the lead to 21-12, as the Spirits allowed just one more point in the set to grab the 2-0 lead.
THIRD SET RECAP
The two units battled to a five-all deadlock in the opening stages of the third before a trio of kills by Lopez with Tullock in serve resulted in a 10-5 Salem lead. With Salem leading 16-10, following a kill from Bradley, Mary Baldwin responded with a timeout. That didn't stop the Spirits' offense, which received kills from Brameus en route to a 22-10 lead. With the Spirits one point from closing out the victory, Mary Baldwin scored five straight points, but a slam from Lopez completed the win.
SALEM 3, METHODIST 0
Salem wrapped up its second three-set victory of the afternoon and eighth of the season with a 25-20, 25-19, 25-20 against the host Monarchs. Anna Rymer and Aspen Bradley shared the team-high in kills (12), with Rymer finishing with a .611 attack percentage after committing only one error in 18 total attacks. With both Valeria Rosa Lopez (eight kills) and Ella Brameus (seven kills) making their offensive impact for Salem, the Spirits posted a .302 attack percentage.
The duo of Ashlyn Wood (25 assists) and Ashlee Peek (16 assists) piloted a Salem lineup that quickly picked up its seventh match of at least a .300 attack percentage on the season.
Brameus and Lopez again paired with McKenzie Tullock to highlight the back row efforts for Salem as the trio tallied 12 digs apiece. Meanwhile, Rymer and Lopez had one assisted blocks each, limiting Methodist to a .264 attack percentage and just 36 kills.
FIRST SET RECAP
Salem opened the match by delivering 15 kills and a .227 attack percentage, grabbing a 10-4 lead early in the match behind a kill from Rymer and a service ace from Lopez. The Monarchs trimmed the deficit to four, 14-10, on a slam from Mahala Carter, but timely kills from Lopez and Rymer along with a block from the pair resulted in an 18-10 Salem lead. Rymer teamed with Snow and Lopez to help deliver the opening set victory for Salem with a 25-20 victory.
SECOND SET RECAP
The serving combination of Brameus and Tullock, coupled with a slam from Abrielle Eckenroth, provided Salem with a 6-1 lead in the second. The lead ballooned to six, 10-4, before kills from Jeanana Fowler trimmed the deficit to three for the Monarchs. Wood stepped into serve and tallied two aces as Salem eventually moved in front 17-10. However, Methodist rallied again and scored five unanswered points before kills from Wood and Rymer opened a 22-17 lead. Salem was on the receiving end of kills from Bradley and Brameus, moving in front 2-0 in the match.
THIRD SET RECAP
The Salem offense stormed out to a 6-0 lead in the third frame, highlighted by two kills from Bradley and two service aces from Wood, but Methodist countered with six straight points of its own to pull even. A timeout by Barry Rymer got the Spirits back on track as they scored 12 of the next 19 points and grabbed an 18-13 advantage. Salem received three kills each from Bradley and Rymer in that stretch, forcing the Monarchs to spend a timeout. Eckenroth drove home a kill, Brameus converted a service ace and Bradley delivered a slam as Salem stretched the lead to 21-13. Two kills by Rymer, along with a Peek service ace, overcame a six-point stretch by the Monarchs as Salem completed the sweep.
SALEM NOTES
- The 2022 team posted a pair of three-set wins and became just the second team in program history to win at least 15 matches in a single season.
- The 2022 unit joined the 2017 team, which finished 21-12, as the only other team in Salem volleyball history to claim at least 15 victories in a season.
-The current Spirits also became the fifth team to win at least nine three-set matches in a season, tying themselves alongside the 2014 and 2018 teams for fifth-most. Only the 2017 and 2016 teams have more, with 12 and 10 three-set wins, respectively.
-In the win over Mary Baldwin, it marked the sixth time this season that Salem posted at least a .300 attack percentage and first time against a USA South Conference program since its last meeting with the Fighting Squirrels on Sept. 24th.
-Shortly thereafter, in the clash with Methodist, the duo of Ashlyn Wood (25 assists) and Ashlee Peek (16 assists) piloted a Salem lineup that quickly picked up its seventh match of at least a .300 attack percentage on the season.