UMW Volleyball Sweeps #23 Christopher Newport, 3-0, on Wednesday Night in CAC Battle of Unbeatens

UMW Volleyball Sweeps #23 Christopher Newport, 3-0, on Wednesday Night in CAC Battle of Unbeatens

The University of Mary Washington volleyball team downed #23 Christopher Newport University, 25-20, 25-17, 25-21, on Wednesday night in a battle of the final two teams undefeated in Capital Athletic Conference play. The Eagles improve to 14-9 and 5-0 in CAC play, while the Captains fall to 18-4 and 4-1.

In the opening game, the Captains gained an early advantage, 7-4, but three kills from sophomore Tenley Hares spurred a 5-1 run to give the Eagles a 9-8 advantage. CNU rebounded with three straight, and held a 12-10 advantage, before UMW's pivotal run in the game.

After the Eagles tied the score, CNU gained a score before the Eagles scored seven of the next eight points to grab a 19-13 lead. Sophomore Wren Berry keyed the run with three service aces, while junior Savannah Powers added a pair of kills. The Eagles built the lead to 23-16 with a block assist from Powers and freshman Alana Harris before CNU scored three straight. But kills from Powers and Harris concluded the first with a 25-20 win for the home side.

In the second, the Captains upped the early lead to 8-6, before the Eagles answered with four straight points, with kills from Peyton Dunow and Harris. Another run from the Eagles upped the advantage to 14-9, and five more Eagle points moved the advantage to 20-12. The margin grew to nine at 22-13 before CNU scored four straight, bt kills from Dnow and Harris provided the final points.

The third game saw the lead exchange hands multiple times before the Eagles scored five straight to take a 13-7 lead. Harris scored three straight kills in the run. CNU responded with seven of eight points to tie the score at 16-16, and then gained the lead at 18-17. From there, UMW scored four straight, but the Captains again rallied to knot the score at 21-21.

A kill and an ace from Hares and a kill from Dunow capped the scoring, giving the Eagles a 25-21 win, and the match.

The Eagles hit .262 for the match, with 46 kills against 18 errors. Harris led UMW with 12 kills, while Hares added 10, and Leslie Walters and Powers each had nine. Berry scored 38 assistsand three aces, while Ryan Cho led the way with 19 digs. 

Mary Washington will return to action on Friday when they visit seventh ranked Juniata College to face the hosts as well as 25th ranked Johns Hopkins.