Site:
Staunton, Va.

Score:
Salem 3, Mary Baldwin 0 (25-23, 25-15, 27-25)

Records:
Salem (14-6, 6-4 USA South) / Mary Baldwin (2-16, 0-9 USA South)

Up Next:
Salem vs. Meredith | October 9 | Winston-Salem, N.C. | Varsity Gym | 7:00 p.m.

STAUNTON, Va. — The Salem volleyball team picked up its sixth road win of the season and third by virtue of a 3-0 sweep with a 25-23, 25-15, 27-25 victory over USA South Conference foe Mary Baldwin on Saturday afternoon. The victory gives the Spirits their seventh in the last eight matches as they return home to face Meredith and Greensboro in a pair of league matches next week.

Aspen Bradley led all Salem hitters with nine kills, posting a .238 attack percentage along the way, while Valeria Rosa Lopez came through with eight kills and Anna Rymer added seven. Ashlyn Wood paced the offense with 15 assists, adding four digs and two service aces along the way, helping Salem to finish the match with a .208 attack percentage and 34 kills.

The Spirits' defense was led by Lopez (nine digs) and Jolina Bun (seven) on the back row, while Rymer (three solo blocks) and Bradley (one solo block) highlighted the front row.

First Set Recap
Neither unit was able to distance itself from the other in the early stages of the set with Salem grabbing a 10-8 lead, following a kill from Lopez, marking the biggest lead by either team. Mary Baldwin answered with four straight points, using kills by Megan Andrews and Hanna Roach, before a 6-0 run by the Spirits made for a 16-12 contest. Rymer was responsible for a service ace, while Bradley added a kill and a solo block, highlighting the six-point outburst. Allowing just two points to the Fighting Squirrels, Salem stretched the lead to 20-14 with a pair of kills by Adalyn Raney. A service ace from Bun, coupled with a Bradley strike and two unforced errors provided Salem with the nine-point win.

Second Set Recap
Salem had its best offensive output of the day in the second, posting a .280 attack percentage, while the defensive scheme limited the Fighting Squirrels to a 0.000 attack percentage. Ella Brameus got thinks started with a service ace, while Abrielle Eckenroth, Rymer, Lopez and Bradley added kills, to help Salem grab a 12-4 advantage. With the two teams separated by six points, 12-6, Bun stepped into serve and delivered two service aces while Bradley delivered a kill to stretch the lead to 19-6. Rymer broke the defense with two kills down the stretch to give Salem the 25-14 victory.

Third Set Recap
The two units battled through seven ties in the start of the third set, reaching a nine-all deadlock on a slam from Mary Baldwin's Alexis Edmonds. Lopez came through with three kills, while Eckenroth added one of her own, to help Salem grab a 13-9 lead. With Eckenroth in serve, highlighted by an ace, Salem built a 17-10 cushion with a slam from Rymer. The trio of Rymer, Lopez and Raney put the Spirits two points from victory, 23-15, but Mary Baldwin fought back with a 7-0 rally to draw to within one, 23-22. A service ace by the Fighting Squirrels, coupled with a service ace by Wood, allowed Salem to triumph with a three-point win.