Volleyball cruises to 3-0 win over crosstown rival Goucher

The Johns Hopkins women's volleyball team charged into its new season by winning its opening match against Goucher in three straight games. The Blue Jays dominated the court throughout the night, sweeping the Gophers, 3-0, by scores of 30-13, 30-17 and 30-15.

The Blue Jays' dominance was not apparent early in the night, as both teams seemed plagued by a lack of communication at the net that resulted in a few of what Hopkins head coach Scott Pennewill called, "unforced errors."

Eventually, the tide began to turn in the Blue Jays favor. Senior hitter Betsy Baydala and junior hitter Katie O'Callaghan began pounding the Gophers at the net, with sophomore defensive specialist Adri Eisen and sophomore libero Lizzie Kay providing constant and solid defense in the backcourt.

With the score tied at 7-7, junior Jen Hajj came in as middle blocker and helped spark a Blue Jays run. Hopkins went on a 6-0 scoring spree, gaining a commanding 13-7 lead over the Gophers in the process. Goucher called timeout in an attempt to halt the Blue Jay run, but it was already too late for the Gophers. Hopkins' defense continued to keep the Goucher frontline at bay, dominating at the net as Hopkins went up 19-10. Hopkins went on to win game one by a score of 30-13.

Though they dominated game one, the Blue Jays seemed once again plagued by a lack of communication at the net at the outset of the second frame. Hopkins' momentary lapse coupled with Goucher's junior hitter Amber Jednorski and junior Hitter Jen Thompson dominating the net propelled the Gophers to an early lead. But the Blue Jays regrouped around the great defense of sophomore blocker Amy Green at the net and Kay on the back line.

Eventually the tide of the game turned for the Blue Jays, as Goucher freshmen hitters Margaret Egiziaco and Caitlin Davis fell apart at the net. Hopkins' hitter Hajj and setter Gorski stepped up the level of play. It was then that Eisen, Green, Gorski, Baydala, O'Callaghan and Kay dominated the court against Goucher, sparking an 11-4 run and an eventual 30-17 game two win.

Game three proved to be more of the same, with Hopkins cruising to victory. With their spectacular play continuing from game two, the Blue Jays dominated the court from the instant game three started. Hopkins was up 10-2 by the time Goucher called its first timeout, and later built an 18-8 lead that forced the Gophers' second timeout of the game. But the timeouts were all for nothing, as Hopkins won game three by a score of 30-15.

Pennewill was proud of his team after the match. He said that this win was an improvement over last year's match against Goucher in that "winning it in three games we did a better job of reducing the unforced errors. We were more efficient with our offensive attack and reduced our hitting errors in half."

"We did get to see a couple of players who are new to the starting lineup perform; Mary Gorski and Adri Eisen both had solid outings," said Pennewill. "Keeping momentum from one game to the next will be important for us this season. Even though Goucher was not that strong, we still needed to get the job done and get out of there in three, which we did."