Volleyball Unable to Slow Down Profs in Three-Set Defeat

GLASSBORO, N.J. -- Forced to compete with only six healthy players, and facing off against a Rowan squad which had won 10 of its last 13 matches, tonight was always going to be an uphill battle for Goucher, and the Gophers could not overcome those obstacles in tonight's 18-25, 18-25, 21-25 loss to the Profs.

Goucher drops to 9-14 in advance of its upcoming weekend of Landmark Conference play, while Rowan is now 16-8 after winning its third straight match.

The first two sets tonight each ended in similar fashion. In the opener, an ace from Megan Chalk (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) pulled the Gophers to within three points of Rowan at 17-20, but the Profs rattled off the next four points to end the potential rally.

After trailing by as many as eight points in the second set, a kill from Addie Lanzarotta (Los Angeles, Calif./Culver City) reduced the deficit to 22-18, but Rowan managed three consecutive kills to take a commanding lead.

Goucher's best effort came in the third set. With Malia Bruce (Brooklyn, N.Y./Essex Street Academy) serving, the Gophers scored the first three points of the set, and the neither team ever had a lead of more than four points. Another kill from Lanzarotta evened up the score at 18 apiece before Rowan won seven of the final 10 points to end the match.

Chalk paced the Gophers with 10 kills and nine digs, and she now has recorded double-digit kills in 18 of 23 matches this season. Hannah Kuehl (Plymouth, N.H./Plymouth Regional) followed with six kills and seven digs while Sarah Johnson (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) led Goucher with 10 digs and 21 assists.

The Gophers are now scheduled to play Scranton at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by a 10:30 a.m. matchup against Juniata on Sunday to close out Landmark regular season action. That schedule, however, remains subject to change based on the status of the federal government shutdown and the potential availability of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. This weekend's matches, originally slated to take place at USMMA, will now be held at Catholic.