NEWARK, N.J.-- The UMBC volleyball team defeated Loyola, 3-0, and Sacred Heart, 3-1, Saturday in the final day of the NJIT Highlanders Challenge. The Retrievers improve to 8-3 on the season.
In the first match of the day, freshman Allie Spaay (Kenosha, Wisc./Kenosha Tremper) earned her first collegiate double-double as the Retrievers defeated Loyola, 25-15, 25-16 and 25-21. Spaay directed the offense with 34 assists and 10 digs.
UMBC held the Greyhound offense to .054 hitting percentage while the Retrievers hit .292 for the match, including .419 in the second set with 14 kills against only one error. Junior Sarah Ball (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada/Sisler) hit .556 with five kills in nine attacks while freshman Sarah Joy (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada/Brookfield) hit .417 for the match. Both Ball and Lang were selected to the All-Tournament team.
Sacred Heart provided a much better challenge to the Retrievers, but UMBC prevailed, 25-21, 22-25, 25-22 and 25-22. The Retrievers hit .333 in both the first and final sets, but hit just .194 in the second and .000 in the third.
Junior Ashley Oscars (Bakersfield, Calif./Liberty) earned her second double-double of the weekend with 11 kills and 10 digs. With 31 kills this weekend, Oscars has moved into 10th all-time at UMBC with 818 kills for her career.
Junior Kira Giles (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada/Glenlawn) commanded the Retriever offense as she earned her fifth double-double of the season with 40 assists and 10 digs. Sophomore Bridget Scheetz (St. Louis, Mo./Ursuline Academy) led UMBC with seven assisted blocks, while hitting nine kills with only two errors. Ball had another very efficient match with seven kills and no errors.
Defense was again the story of the day with the Retrievers allowing all three opponents this weekend to just a .074 hitting percentage overall.
The Retrievers return to action Friday as they travel to Morgantown, W.V. to take part in the WVU Volleyball Classic against George Washington, UNC-Greensboro and host West Virginia.
LINKS
UMBC vs. Sacred Heart Box Score
