WILMINGTON, Del. (Sept. 11, 2021) – Despite four Mavericks recording double-digit kills on the day, the Mercy College volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (21-25, 25-21, 16-25, 22-25) decision to Shepherd University before falling 3-0 (26-28, 17-25, 17-25) to host Goldey-Beacom College on Saturday afternoon.
The Mavericks (2-4) have now lost three of their last four matches. Shepherd (6-1) defeated Goldey-Beacom (2-5) in straight sets in the other match of the day.
Match 1: Shepherd 3, Mercy 1
Mercy took a 4-2 lead in set one, but the Rams answered with a 10-4 run to take a 12-8 lead. The Mavericks battled back and cut the deficit to one, 14-13, after a senior Tynesha Adams (Prattville, Ala./Bethune Cookman University) kill. Shepherd followed with a 7-1 run to increase their lead to seven, 21-14. Mercy later made it 22-20, but the Rams ended the set with three of the next four points to earn a 25-21 set one win.
The Mavericks jumped out to a 7-1 lead in set two, leading to a Shepherd timeout. Out of the timeout, the Rams tied the score at 9-9. The score was later tied at 13-13 before Mercy went on a 9-1 run to take a 22-14 lead. Shepherd made it 24-21 late in the set, but junior Larissa Schneid (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) finished the set off with a kill to give Mercy a 25-21 set two win.
Mercy opened the third set with an 8-6 lead, but the Rams came back on a 9-3 spurt to take a 15-11 lead. The Mavericks later made it 16-14, following a sophomore Jessica Angounou (Phoenix, Ariz./Betty H. Fairfax) kill, but Shepherd went on a 7-0 run to take a 23-14 lead. The Rams would hold on for the 25-16 set three win.
The Mavericks took a 5-1 lead in set four, but Shepherd went on an 11-5 run, to take a 12-10 lead. Mercy clawed their way back and tied the set at 21-21, forcing a Ram timeout. Following the timeout, Shepherd scored four of the next five points to secure the set and match.
Adams had a team-high 12 kills and five blocks and Schneid had 11 kills and 14 digs. Senior Nilka Rivera Maldonado (Bayamon, P.R./Concordia College) had 11 kills and 10 digs and junior Stéphanie Lankhorst (Apeldoorn, Netherlands/Koninklijke Scholengemeenschap Apeldoorn) had 10 kills. Junior Yarianne Gonzalez (Manati, P.R./Monroe College) had 41 assists and 16 digs and senior Sophia Flanders (Hamden, Conn./Hamden) had 15 digs.
Shepherd was led by Mikaylah Hoy who had a match-high 15 kills.
Mercy had 51 kills, 48 assists, 68 digs, one ace and hit .094. Shepherd had 50 kills, 44 assists, 70 digs, four aces and hit .185.
Match 2: Goldey-Beacom 3, Mercy 0
Mercy took a 17-11 lead in set one after a Lankhorst ace, forcing a Lightning timeout. Out of the timeout, Goldey-Beacom went on a 13-7 run to take a 24-23 lead, leading to a Mercy timeout. The Mavericks answered with a Schneid kill to even the match at 24-24. The teams continued to trade points until it was 26-26 after a Lightning attack error. The hosts ended the set with two straight points to earn a 28-26 set one win.
Goldey-Beacom built a 17-11 lead in set two. Mercy battled their way back into the set and made it 19-17 after a Lankhorst ace. However, the hosts closed the set with six straight points to take the set, 25-17.
The Lightning had a 13-7 lead in set three, but a Schneid kill later got the Mavericks to within two, 14-12. The hosts would end the set on an 11-5 run to secure the set and match.
Lankhorst had a team-high seven kills and junior Ayzaline Garay (San Juan, P.R./Bronx School of Law, Government and Justice) had six kills and a career-high 10 digs. Schneid had six kills and Gonzalez had 21 assists and six digs. Freshman Sydney Whitfield (Clemson, S.C./D.W Daniel HS) had a career-high 13 digs and senior Selma Vulic (New Rochelle, N.Y./New Rochelle) had four kills and 10 digs.
Goldey-Beacom was led by Julia Syrdahl who had a match-high 13 kills.
Mercy had 31 kills, 29 assists, 55 digs, eight aces and hit .018. Goldey-Beacom had 35 kills, 34 assists, 49 digs, six aces and hit .226.
Head Coach Gary Preston Jr. and the Mavericks resume action on Tuesday, September 14th when they face Southern N.H. and Saint Anselm at Southern N.H. starting at 4:30 p.m.
