NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Saint Mary's volleyball team closed out the third set on a 12-2 run to secure a conference sweep over Alma via a 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-22) final margin.
The Belles got out to an early lead against the Scots in the first set with a pair of kills by
Megan Collantes and two kills by
Colleen McCarthy for a 7-3 advantage. Alma pulled within a point at 11-10 and 12-11 as Saint Mary's was able to come up with answers both times to maintain a lead. The Scots, however, used a 6-2 spurt to erase the Belles' four-point advantage a short while later to knot the score at 17-17. A service error by Alma followed by a
Hannah Stacy kill put Saint Mary's ahead 19-17. The Scots stayed close late but the Belles used another
Hannah Stacy kill and two kills by McCarthy down the stretch for a 25-22 win.
The second set featured seven ties and four lead changes as the Belles quickly erased a 2-1 deficit with four consecutive points. The teams stayed close to one another as the score was tied at 8-8, 9-9, and 10-10 before Alma went ahead 12-10. Three points by the home side gave the Belles a 13-12 advantage on a string of errors by the Scots. Alma put down a kill to knot the score at 13-13. Saint Mary's then responded with a decisive 8-1 run with kills by Collantes and
Allison Thornton to gain a 21-14 lead. The Scots made it close with a 6-1 spurt of their own to pull within three points at 22-19, but a kill by McCarthy, a kill by
Molly Pooler, and a solo block by Pooler gave the Belles the set by a 25-19 score.
The two sides continued to jockey for position and the lead in the third set with neither team building more than a four-point lead through the first 18 points played. Saint Mary's held an 11-7 lead before the Scots started building some momentum in the set. Three consecutive Alma points were broken up by a service error, and a
Hannah Stacy kill a few moments later put the Belles up 13-12. The Scots, however, had their sights set on forcing a fourth set as Alma used an 8-0 run to go ahead 20-13 as the Belles used both timeouts over that stretch.
Colleen McCarthy put away a kill to break up the run, but the Scots countered with a kill of their own for a 21-14 lead. Another kill by McCarthy on the next point helped jump-start a big run for the Belles as Saint Mary's used a massive 11-1 run to take the set 25-22. McCarthy tallied four kills during that run while
Hannah Stacy put away an unconventional kill of her own to help the Belles secure the sweep victory.
The Belles (6-10, 2-3 MIAA) are off from competition until Saturday, October 16 when they travel to Manchester for a pair of non-conference matches against Rose-Hulman and the host Spartans starting at 3:00 p.m.
