Gophers Move to 3-1 after Pair of Three-Set Sweeps
HARRISONBURG, Va. — A pair of straight-set victories closed out a solid performance from Goucher at this year’s Eastern Mennonite Invitational. The Gophers dispatched Mary Baldwin 25-16, 25-15, 25-13 in the morning before sweeping Salem 25-19, 25-20, 25-23 later in the afternoon.
Team Stats
Mary Baldwin
| Game Statistics | Goucher | Mary Baldwin |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .333 | .021 |
| Blocks | 2.0 | 1.0 |
| Digs | 48 | 50 |
| Aces | 15 | 4 |
Salem
| Game Statistics | Goucher | Salem |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .137 | .031 |
| Blocks | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Digs | 76 | 62 |
| Aces | 6 | 7 |
HARRISONBURG, Va. — A pair of straight-set victories closed out a solid performance from Goucher at this year's Eastern Mennonite Invitational. The Gophers dispatched Mary Baldwin 25-16, 25-15, 25-13 in the morning before sweeping Salem 25-19, 25-20, 25-23 later in the afternoon.
Goucher was bolstered by a strong attack percentage in its opening match against the Fighting Squirrels (0-3). The team's .333 attack rate was the highest for the program since a .354 performance against Notre Dame (Md.) on Oct. 4, 2011.
Hannah Kuehl (Plymouth, N.H./Plymouth Regional) led the way with a team-high 12 kills. Michelle Tweedie (Accra, Ghana/Lincoln Community School) chipped in nine kills with a .692 attack percentage.
Erika DiPasquale (Paramus, N.J./Paramus) blasted six of the Gophers' 15 aces, while Meredith Johnson (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) added five aces to go along with a team-best 13 digs. Goucher's 15 aces were the most in a three-set match since the team had 17 in last year's matchup with Mary Baldwin at this same tournament.
The Gophers (3-1) also faced off against Salem (1-3) in last year's EMU Invitational, and they pit together a repeat performance of their three-set win last August.
Kuehl and Tweedie once again paced the attack with 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Tweedie converted 11 of her 22 attacks in the finale, and she managed a .278 attack percentage for the tournament.
DiPasquale tallied four more aces to finish with a total of 13 over the weekend's four matches. Meredith Johnson had 20 digs, setting a new career-high for a three-set match, and Val Kirsch (Westport, Conn./Staples) added 18 digs.
Sarah Johnson (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) was Goucher's representative on the All-Tournament team. The primary setter for the Gophers, she finished with 97 assists overall while also tacking on 50 digs and six aces.
Goucher now has three days off before its home opener on Wednesday night against Rowan. That contest from the Decker Sports & Recreation is slated to begin at 7 p.m.