GREENSBORO, N.C. – Christian Ritter had 15 kills and 17 digs in Guilford College’s 3-2 comeback volleyball win over visiting Salem College Tuesday night.
The Quakers (13-7) overcame a 2-0 deficit and improved to 8-1 in five-set matches with their fifth straight victory. Scores of the match were: 16-25, 17-25, 25-23, 25-19, 15-10. The contest featured 17 ties and nine lead changes.
Salem (9-10) hit over .300 as a team in winning the first two sets with relative ease. The Spirits had a 13-5 lead in the third set after an Olivia Henderson kill capped a 10-1 run. Guilford settled down, but the Spirits maintained a 17-13 edge before Guilford rallied to overcome a two-set deficit for the second time this season. The Spirits committed four errors around a Morgan Tompkins kill in a 5-0 Quakers’ run that put them in the lead. The teams traded points before Guilford closed the set on consecutive kills by setter Tina Eucker.
The Quakers hit .344 with 14 team kills in the fourth set, their best of the night. Ritter and Morgan Tompkins both had four kills to help Guilford force a fifth set.
Guilford raced to a 9-4 lead in the fifth, only to see the Spirits reel off five straight points to tie the score for what proved the final time. A Tompkins putaway ended the spurt and started a 6-1 Quakers’ burst to end the match. Khaira Bolden had four of her nine kills in the decisive set, including the match-clinching point.
Ritter added three service aces and two block assists to finish with a match-best 19 points. Tompkins overcame a sluggish start to finish with nine kills and Eucker put down six balls. Eucker also served up three aces, made 13 digs, and distributed 34 assists. She moved into eighth place in school history with 728 assists this season. Cydney Scott led Guilford with 18 digs and McKinley Durham added 16. Amanda Rabey chipped in four kills and four blocks.
Taylor Moulton’s 15 kills and match-best 22 digs led Salem. She also had five assists, two service aces and three blocks in an excellent all-around match. Brooklyn Snow added 11 kill and 12.5 points and Henderson finished with seven putdowns on .667 hitting and a match-best five blocks. Dixie Fulk had 22 assists and 12 digs for the Spirits. Hannah Delcamp added 21 helpers for the visitors.
Coach Emily Gann’s Quakers visit Greensboro College Wednesday (10/17) at 7:00 p.m.