The Hopkins volleyball team went a perfect 2-0 in its Tri-Match Saturday, needing four sets to beat both Haverford and Frostburg State, 3-1. On Tuesday, the Jays continued their winning ways, needing only three sets to sweep conference rival Dickinson.
The wins kept the Blue Jays perfect at home this year and extended their Centennial Conference record to 7-0 while preserving their current six game win streak.
After defeating the Fords, whom the Blue Jays had not won against in six straight matches, Hopkins rallied from a one-set deficit in their second match against Frostburg State to pull out the victory.
Days later, they downed the Red Devils to improve their overall record to an impressive 17-4.
The Jays took a 6-4 lead in their first set against Haverford and never looked back, with freshmen Katie Schwarz and Maria Metalios combining on a three-point run to give Hopkins a 13-8 advantage. Fellow classmate Kim Bronson joined in with an impressive kill to give the Jays a seven-point lead they would never relinquish.
The Fords never mustered up significant runs for the remainder of the set, and the Jays closed it out with ease, 25-14.
Hopkins got off to another fast start on the second set, going ahead 8-5, led by an imposing kill from freshman Megan Schwarz, twin sister of Katie. Again, the Jays did not allowed the Fords to establish any kind of offens ive rhythm, stymieing multiple attack attempts to take an eventual 21-14 lead.
Haverford called a time-out in an effort to cool the Blue Jays' momentum, but it was no use, as Hopkins scored two straight points out of the break on their way to a 25-17 victory.
In the third set, Haverford presented more of a challenge, as the Jays fell behind early thanks to six straight Ford points to take the early lead, 13-5. That lead would grow larger when the Fords extended their advantage to nine points in their lone win of the match, 25-16.
It was the first loss in a set at home for Hopkins this season.
Hopkins bounced back from this loss, however, cruising to a 25-16 fourth set victory behind a match-clinching kill from Katie Schwarz. Overall, freshman Meagan Donohoe led the way for the Blue Jays with 12 kills on the match.
Hopkins then faced nearby foe Frostburg State in their second match of the afternoon and dropped their first set in a close 25-23 contest. This came after leading 20-17 earlier in the game.
The set was close throughout, as neither the Jays nor the Bobcats could open up any significant lead over their opponent. With the set tied at 23, the Bobcats scored two straight points to secure the victory.
The Jays responded in the second set, however, mounting an impressive comeback from a six-point deficit to tie the game at 18 apiece. Hopkins earned a slight advantage down the stretch, 23-22, and managed to pull away with consecutive kills from freshman Ellen Rogers and Bronson to close out another tight set and tie the match at one.
The third set was the exception in a match dominated by close games, as Hopkins opened up a comfortable lead over the Bobcats early, 7-2, en route to a 25-14 victory. The win was on the wings of two five-point runs to take a 2-1 advantage into the fourth and final set.
The deciding set was another tightly contested game that went down to the wire. Both the Jays and the Bobcats failed to gain any advantage over three points throughout. With Frostburg State leading 23-22, the Blue Jays responded with a three-point run to close out the set and the match, earning their 16th win of the season.
In Tuesday evening Centennial Conference action against Dickinson, Donohoe shined once again for the Blue Jays, breaking a school match-record with a .923 hitting percentage (12-for-13) to break the previous mark of .909 set back in 1996.
Donohoe's spectacular performance highlighted a match in which Hopkins won all three sets played, by scores of 25-9 for the first set and 25-15 for both the second and third sets.
Throughout the match Dickinson led only in the beginning of the final set, as they took a 5-2 lead, but Hopkins would quickly erase this deficit and roll to their 17th victory.
Next up for the Lady Jays is a trip to Charles Street rival the College of Notre Dame. They will then put their perfect conference record on the line this weekend at Bryn Mawr.
