WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Catholic volleyball team hosted local rival Marymount on Wednesday for a Pope's Cup match. The Cardinals stayed in the fight for all three sets, but couldn't overtake the Saints, dropping the match 3-0.
The first set saw a lot of back-and-forth between the two teams. Marymount scored first, but Catholic answered with two points of their own, beginning with a kill from
Caroline Welsh, followed by a service ace from
Alejandra Garcia.
The score was tied five times in the set. After the Cardinals held a three-point lead over the Saints, they tied it up at 13 points apiece, before pulling away with it. They solidified the 25-18 win in set one with a kill from Brigid Donahue.
Maddie Wilkey and
Caroline Welsh showcased their power in set one, each notching two kills in the first. Wilkey and
Kate Kozlowski each picked up a solo block.
Catholic had a strong set two, logging 16 sets to Marymount's 14, and recording a kill percentage of 0.233. The Saints opened the set with two-straight points, but the Cardinals responded with three-straight, starting with a kill from
Julia Raab, followed by a Saint error, then a kill from
Juliette Cummings.
The teams duked it out until late in the set, with each team going on solid runs. Marymount added three straight points before a kill from Wilkey stopped their flow. Cummings followed her with a kill, then Catholic narrowed the gap to just one point as they scored on an attack error. But Brigid Donahue managed to find the floor for Marymount, and they took the set 25-23.
In set three, Catholic built an early lead as they looked to force the Saints into two more sets. They struck early, getting on the board by way of Marymount attack error, then finding a second point from Kozlowski. They grew a four-point lead over the Saints, but the Saints remained within striking distance and managed to knot the score at nine, then again at 11.
The Saints then found a groove, scoring seven crucial points to take a significant lead over the Cardinals. They maintained the momentum, and secured the final point and the match, 25-16.
Tying her season-high with 17 assists in the match,
Kate Berra reached 10th on Catholic's all-time career assists leaderboard with 1,205 assists.
Anna Maria Carella had eight assists in the match, and she trails Berra on the all-time list with 1,204 career assists.
Laci Freitas led the team with seven kills, and was second on the team with 14 digs. Wilkey logged six kills in the game while Welsh and Kozlowski recorded five apiece. Kozlowski recorded an attack percentage of .231 in the meeting.
Garcia had strong digging performance, picking up 18 digs, her seventh game this season in the double figures. She leads the squad this season with 162 digs.
Up next, Catholic will take a trip to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania for a Friday evening match against Moravian before continuing their road weekend with a Tri-Match hosted by Wilkes. The meeting against the Greyhounds is scheduled for 7 p.m. on October 9.
