SALEM, W.Va. — The Salem Tigers women's volleyball team delivered a dominant performance at home on Tuesday evening, sweeping Penn State-Beaver in straight sets (25-8, 25-6, 25-4) inside the T. Edward Davis Gymnasium. With the victory, Salem improves to 13-9 on the season.
Salem took control of the match early, holding Penn State-Beaver to a negative hitting percentage in all three sets and forcing 13 total reception errors. The Tigers hit an efficient .532 as a team, tallying 40 total kills against just three hitting errors across 62 total attacks.
After trading early points in the opening frame, the Tigers broke the set open with a six-point run anchored by the serve of libero Lorin Turkdogan. A streak of kills by Noemi Combi and Hailey Haynes pushed the lead out of reach. Combi led the way in the set with five kills, and set point was capped off by a Combi service ace to secure the 25-8 win.
Brianna Beyerle set the tone early in the second set, sparking an 8-0 opening spurt with five service aces from behind the line. Setter Katie Kennedy orchestrated a smooth attack, establishing options off the bench including Sofia Ghadesi Morales and Lily Irvin. Salem hit .545 in the frame while holding Penn State-Beaver to just three kills on the way to a 25-6 victory.
The Tigers closed out the match with their sharpest offensive efficiency of the night in the third set, recording 12 kills on 20 attempts without a single hitting error to register a .600 hitting percentage. Service pressure remained relentless down the stretch, as Turkdogan and Amari Nunez added consecutive aces to seal the 25-4 sweep.
Beyerle finished with a team-high 11.0 points, posting four kills on five attempts alongside seven service aces and three digs. Combi paced the attack with nine kills on 11 attempts (.727 PCT), while Haynes was equally sharp, hitting .750 with seven kills and three digs. Off the bench, Irvin contributed six kills on eight attempts. Kennedy and Nunez directed the offense smoothly, dishing out 22 and 11 assists, respectively. Turkdogan anchored the defense with a team-high 10 digs and added three aces.
Overall, Salem held a massive advantage at the net and behind the service line, outkilling Penn State-Beaver 40-3 and holding a 16-1 advantage in service aces.
