The Quill/Yaliang Yu
By Nick Forbes Asst. sports editor
The Susquehanna volleyball team hosted the second Landmark Conference tournament this season on Oct. 1, winning both matches that they played. The River Hawks welcomed Juniata, Moravian and Elizabethtown for the all-day event.
Susquehanna played in the first and last matches of the day, winning both of their contests in convincing fashion. The first matchup of the day was against an Elizabethtown squad that entered the match with a 4-11 record.
Susquehanna won the match three sets to none, winning the first two by a wide margin. In the first set, the River Hawks got out to an 11-3 lead and never looked back. The lead was built thanks in large part to four early aces from freshman defensive specialist Kasey Bost.
Susquehanna kept pouring it on. With a tenacious defense that allowed no room for Elizabethtown error, the Hawks coasted to a 25-9 win in the first set.
In the second set, the teams found themselves deadlocked at five. The Blue Jays got a point off a break and created a two-point cushion that they maintained to give them an 11-9 advantage.
Susquehanna broke out a 7-0 run to create the separation they needed to win the second set. The River Hawks allowed only four more points in the set, taking it 25-15.
The third set was a different story for Susquehanna, as Elizabethtown found some footing and stayed neck-and-neck with the River Hawks for the entirety of the set. The set came to a head with both teams knotted at 24 points.
Junior outside hitter Morgan Lowe gave the River Hawks an edge with a kill on the next point, and senior setter Erin Byrne delivered a kill that ended the set 26-24 in favor of Susquehanna.
Susquehanna was led by Lowe, who totaled 11 kills in the match. Senior setter Maggie O’Hearn put in her work at the service line, netting 16 aces that helped Susquehanna pull away. Freshman outside hitter Caroline Boehm had 12 digs and senior defensive specialist Alyssa Chiodo contributed six more.
Susquehanna ended the day in a match against Moravian, whom they easily handled on their way to another 3-0 victory.
The first set was led by O’Hearn and Lowe at the service line, and the River Hawks quickly jumped out to a 7-1 lead that proved impossible for the Greyhounds to come back from.
Susquehanna did not allow Moravian to get within six points for the remainder of the set and went on to win 25-15.
Determined to get out to another early lead in the second set, the River Hawks got out to a 7-0 lead that was spearheaded by two kills from Byrne as well as another kill from senior middle hitter Leana Carvin.
The Greyhounds tried making a run of their own, but still found themselves in a 15-10 deficit. Susquehanna’s defense was unforgiving, and with one final kill from freshman outside hitter Natalie Arm, the Hawks claimed the second set 25-11.
To conclude the day, Susquehanna and Moravian stayed close to each other in the third set, at one point tied at 12. Susquehanna scored the next five points to give them an advantage and went on to win 25-14.
Byrne led the team in kills with eight in the match, and freshman middle hitter Hannah Lyons and sophomore outside hitter Mallory Yeingst had five kills apiece. O’Hearn continued to be the dominant leader for the River Hawks, racking up 16 aces. Junior setter Julie Kreutzer also had 11 aces for the River Hawks.
The two wins improved the River Hawks to 16-4 overall, and more importantly improved their conference record to 3-1.
The River Hawks pay a visit to Lycoming for the Lycoming invitational on Friday, Oct. 7.
