WILMINGTON, N.C. – Harvard women's volleyball swept the opening day of the UNCW Hampton Inn University Invitational to secure its first 5-0 start in program history.
The Crimson handed UNC Asheville (7-2) its second loss of the season with a 25-12, 25-20, 25-21 win on Friday morning before winning 25-8, 14-25, 25-22, 25-19 over Norfolk State at Hanover Hall.
UNC Asheville 0, Harvard 3
The first set started with the teams trading kills and errors until a solo block from
Ryleigh Patterson kicked off a 13-1 scoring run for the Crimson. During the run,
Sofia Rossi,
Ali Farquhar, and Patterson picked up kills and Patterson and Farquhar each stuffed solo blocks as Harvard eventually led 18-7. A service error added a point for the Bulldogs, but the Crimson regained momentum with a 4-0 run that put the team at set point, 24-10. The end of the set was held off for two points, but Rossi knocked down a kill to end the set 25-12.
Scoring was tight to start set two, but UNCA got out to an 11-9 lead off of one block, one ace, and two kills. Another solo block by Patterson sparked a 3-0 run to retake the lead at 13-11, and an error from Asheville had the Crimson up 15-13 at the technical timeout. The teams traded blocks before an ace from
Riley Resmer forced a Bulldog timeout at 20-16. UNCA got back within one with a kill, an ace, and a block at 20-19, but Patterson tabbed a kill and a solo block for a 22-19 lead. Farquhar finished off the set at 25-20 with a kill.
Harvard went on a 7-1 run to start the final set, featuring kills by
Kayla Nwabueze and Patterson, a block from Farquhar, and an ace from Rossi. After Asheville burned its first timeout, the Bulldogs tied the score up at 13-all and led 15-14 at the media break. Points went back and forth until Nwabueze sealed the victory with a kill at 25-21.
Norfolk State 1, Harvard 3
Harvard dominated the first set, pulling ahead 12-5 after back-to-back aces from
Bridget Egan. The Crimson added on with kills from
Masina Ogbechie to lead 15-7 at the media break. Farquhar and Patterson combined for a block before three errors by the Spartans allowed Harvard to gain a 19-7 lead. NSU tacked on one point, but the Crimson went on a 6-0 scoring run that featured two kills from Patterson, three aces from Rossi, and a kill from Nwabueze to win the set 25-8.
Farquhar and Rossi knocked down kills to start the set, but Norfolk State took control early and secured a 15-10 lead before the technical timeout. Errors from the Crimson allowed the Spartans to go on an 8-1 scoring run to close out the set, winning 25-14 after an attacking error by Harvard.
The Crimson capitalized on errors by NSU and
Jordan Shelor served an ace to give Harvard a 7-1 lead. Norfolk State added a few points, but Ogbechie and Resmer combined for a block to cement an 11-3 lead. A kill from Farquhar put the Crimson up by five at the media timeout, but the Spartans responded to tie the score at 18. Rossi tabbed a kill and Resmer served an ace, but NSU retook the lead with three straight points at 21-20. Rossi's kills and Patterson's solo blocks gave the Crimson set point at 24-22, and Rossi's sixth ace ended the set 25-22.
Three consecutive kills by Farquhar allowed Harvard to take a 3-0 lead before a 4-1 run, highlighted by two more aces from Rossi, had the Crimson ahead 7-1. Norfolk State slowly responded, getting within four as Harvard had a 15-11 lead at the technical timeout. Rossi served two more aces and Farquhar logged a kill and a solo block to force a Spartan timeout at 19-12. NSU kept the pressure on, but Ogbechie and Farquhar posted back-to-back kills to win the set and match 25-19.
Harvard Highlights
- Middle blocker Ryleigh Patterson stuffed five solo blocks against UNC Asheville, the most by a player in a single match since 2009. Patterson also added four solo blocks against Norfolk State, the most by a player in a single match since 2014.
- Outside hitter Sofia Rossi served 10 aces against Norfolk State, the most by a single player since at least 2002. Rossi added three aces against UNCA and logged 19 kills through both matches.
- Outside hitter Ali Faruqhar hit .360 (12-3-25) against the Spartans and stuffed two blocks. Freshman outside hitter Kayla Nwabueze hit at a team-high .389 clip with nine kills and two errors on 18 swings.
- Sophia Wei posted her second double of the season during the Asheville match, logging 15 assists and 14 digs.
- Harvard served 15 aces for the second time this season during the Norfolk State game. Outside hitter Bridget Egan served three and Riley Resmer and Jordan Shelor each added one to Rossi's 10 aces.
Next Up
The Crimson will conclude the UNCW Invitational with a match against host UNC Wilmington on Saturday, Sept. 12, at 1 p.m., or 30 minutes after the conclusion of the prior match, at Hanover Hall.