STEUBENVILLE, Ohio — The Salem University women's volleyball team split a Saturday tri-match at Franciscan University inside Finnegan Fieldhouse, dropping a straight-set decision (17-25, 16-25, 21-25) to host Franciscan before bouncing back with a sweep (25-19, 25-17, 25-15) over La Roche University.
With the results, the Tigers now stand at 8-4 on the season.
Franciscan 3, Salem 0
In the day's opening match, Salem struggled to generate offensive momentum against host Franciscan (3-3). The Barons capitalized early in the first two sets, holding the Tigers to low-efficiency output while building comfortable leads.
Salem put up its strongest fight in the third set, locking Franciscan into 11 tie scores and seven lead changes. However, Franciscan's dual pin attack of Logan Hickey and Anna Guard—who each registered 10 kills—proved to be the difference as the Barons completed the sweep with a 25-21 decision.
Alexandra Vigneron led Salem with six kills, while
Lily Irvin added four kills and team-high three block solos.
Lorin Turkdogan anchored the defense with 13 digs, followed closely by
Katie Kennedy and
Ana Julia Avila Vian with 11 digs apiece.
Salem 3, La Roche 0
The Tigers regained their form in the afternoon slate, wire-to-wire dominating La Roche (2-4) in three sets.
Salem set the tone immediately in set one, hitting .375 behind 10 kills and just a single attack error to take a 25-19 opener. Set two saw La Roche keep pace through 10 tie scores, but Salem pulled away late to claim a 25-17 win. The Tigers then slammed the door in the final frame, holding the Redhawks to a -.037 hitting percentage to secure the 25-15 match victory.
Vigneron paced the attack once again with a match-high 10 kills on a .409 hitting percentage, while
Brianna Beyerle added eight kills and nine digs. Dual setters
Amari Nunez and
Katie Kennedy distributed 10 and three assists, respectively, while Kennedy recorded 10 digs. Irvin controlled the net once more, recording three block solos.
La Roche was led by Mackenzie Myers, who posted three kills and eight digs.
