Catholic University of America

GLENSIDE, Pa. - The Catholic volleyball team for their first match of the Arcadia Quad on Friday afternoon against Bard College. The Cardinals took down the Raptors, 3-0.

The opening set saw strong performances from both teams. Catholic opened the scoring with a kill by Maddie Wilkey, then Bard followed with a point from Isis Pribble. Julia Raab made her first kill for the Cardinals in the next play, which was met with five-straight points from the Raptors to give them a significant lead. 

That early lead didn't stop the Cardinals, who evened the score at six, and again at seven, before regaining the lead. Catholic held on tight to the lead, holding Bard off until the score was tied once more at 19.

The Cardinals then went on to solidify their first set victory with four-straight points and kills from Julia Turchiano and Laci Freitas broken up by Raptor points. They took the set 25-21 to earn an early advantage in the match. Freitas and Raab had stellar first sets, Freitas notching six kills in the first, followed by Raab with five. 

In the second set, Bard took the first two points, but Catholic responded with five straight to establish their presence. The Cardinals continued to build an early advantage, going up by as many as six points. Bard began to mount a comeback, regaining the lead with their 15th point of the set. They continued to build on that momentum, holding a small lead over the Cardinals for a few rallies. Both teams continued to battle it out before the Cardinals took the set, 25-23.

It was a fight in the third set from the initial serve. Bard took the first point, but both teams went back and forth. After a few attack errors, Catholic took a significant, three-point lead. They carried that fire to take their biggest lead of the game, up 19-12. 

Bard attempted to claw back, with three service aces, two of which came back-to-back from Xenia Vassou. But they were unable to regain the lead, and Catholic secured the straight set victory.

The Cardinals had a strong showing against the Raptors, recording 41 kills to Bard's 29, and 51.0 points to their 40.0.

Raab led the squad with 13 kills, finishing with an attack percentage of .481. Freitas followed closely with 11. Marin Stensrud led the digs category in the match, totaling 11 while Raab followed with seven and Freitas totaled six.

Kate Kozlowski and Caroline Welsh each picked up two block assists against the Raptors, while Turchiano, Wilkey, Mariana Roman Cruz, and Raab each added one block assist. Kate Berra and Ava Borcky each contributed two service aces against the Raptors. Carella and Berra were strong playmakers against Bard, Carella logging 17 assists and Berra making 16.

This win brings Catholic to 2-0 overall this season. They will return to the Alumni Courts on Saturday, September 5 with two matches. First, the Cardinals will take on Muhlenberg at 3 p.m., followed by a meeting against the host, Arcadia at 5 p.m.