Volleyball off to historic start

The Hopkins women’s volleyball team has started off the season 8-0, the best opening to a season in school history after winning two straight tournaments in consecutive weekends.

Standout freshman Jasmine Warmington distinguished herself as a rising star, totaling an outstanding 88 kills in eight matches. Hopkins bested Stevenson three sets to two to win the Greg Giovanazzi Memorial Tournament on Sunday, September 2nd. The win capped off a spectacular effort by the Blue Jays in the tournament, as they ran the table, beating Cabrini, Goucher and Hiram along the way to a spotless 4-0 mark.

The wins came against quality competition, as three of the four teams the Blue Jays beat were NCAA Tournament qualifiers in 2011. Jasmine Warmington was named the tournament MVP, while fellow freshman Carolyn Zin was awarded with all-tournament team honors.

In an interview with Hopkinssports.com, Head coach Matt Troy commented on the victory following the game, saying, “[The tournament] was a great start to the season and a complete team effort this weekend. For a young team it’s a positive sign to see them gelling so quickly.”

Warmington’s auspicious collegiate start was highlighted by her average of 12 kills per game throughout the tournament, a fantastic clip. Senior Amelia Thomas chipped in with 45 total digs, while Zin recorded 78 assists throughout the tournament.

Hopkins defeated Cabrini in their first match of the 2012 season, overcoming a faulty start to win the match 3-1 (19-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-17). Warmington previewed her play to come with 14 kills, while Thomas catalogued 20 of her digs to help the Jays pull out the win. Hopkins then faced Goucher, whom they dominated in a three-set sweep (25-12, 25-6, 25-15). Zin tallied 8 more assists, while freshman Caitlin Callahan helped out with nine assists.

Next, Hopkins squared off against Hiram, once again going undefeated in set play (25-15, 25-12, 25-22). Zin maintained her stellar performance with eight more digs and 15 assists. Finally, they defeated Stevenson in a tough-fought five set match. They would slip on the first set but come through in consecutive sets after that, winning them 25-15 and 25-21. After Stevenson forced a decisive fifth set, Hopkins squeaked out one last set, 17-15, to give them the victory and the tournament title.

The Blue Jays then continued their streak of dominance this past weekend at the Washington and Lee Invitational, again going 4-0, giving them a total of eight wins to start their season, the best start in school history. Warmington was named the tournament MVP for the second week in a row, registering 40 more kills in helping the Blue Jays to victories against North Carolina Wesleyan, Southern Virginia, Lynchburg and Washington and Lee. Thomas surpassed her output from a week prior, accumulating 48 digs over the four game slate.

Hopkins began the tournament against UNC Wesleyan, winning the match three sets to one, dropping only the third set, and that set by only 2 (25-19, 25-13, 26-24, 25-19). Zin and sophomore Mariel Metallios contributed with a combined 37 assists, while sophomore Katie Schwarz recorded a season-high 22 digs in the victory against the Battling Bishops. Hopkins then dismissed Southern Virginia in their third sweep in six games (25-14, 25-19, 25-19). Warmington hit kills on half of her attempts, going nine for eighteen. Sophomore Megan Schwarz, freshman Stephanie Yokoyama and Thomas tallied eight digs apiece to lead the Jays to the win. The Jays finished off the tournament with two more perfect bouts, going 6-0 combined in sets as they dispatched Lynchburg (25-21, 25-11, 25-15), and Washington and Lee (25-16, 25-17, 25-13).

The W’s extended the Jays regular season winning streak to 21 games, a run that dates back to September 27th, 2011. All in all, in eight games, the Blue Jays have totaled a startling five sweeps of opposing teams. Hopkins looks to keep its immaculate record intact when it heads off to its third straight tournament this coming weekend, as it travels to the Carnegie Mellon Invitational, and is scheduled to face off against John Carroll, Carnegie Mellon, Muskingum and Wooster.