BALTIMORE, MD – The Johns Hopkins volleyball team returned home for a mid-week Centennial Conference match against Dickinson Wednesday night, outmatching the Red Devils from the opening serve en route to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-12, 25-14) win.
 
Simrin Carlsen led the Blue Jays attack with a match-high 17 kills to pair with her team-best 11 digs. Pamela Chiakpo also got into double digits in kills with 10 on an impressive .412 hitting percentage, while Helena Swaak ended the match with a game-high 39 assists. Defensively it was Alice Yu racking up a match-high four blocks, extending her streak of games with at least four rejections to five and helping hold the opposition to a .000 hitting percentage.
 
Hopkins (21-4, 8-1 Centennial) would open up Wednesday's first set with a 4-0 run coming on a pair of Carlsen kill as well as a Grace Reininga ace and block from Carlsen and Yu, putting them in the driver's seat immediately. The score remained between 4-7 points before an error by Dickinson (10-13, 4-5 Centennial) followed by kills from Yu and Chiakpo gave the Jays their largest lead at 18-8. The Red Devils chipped away at the lead getting as close as 16-22 before another 3-0 run ended at the hands of Carlsen closed out Set 1 25-16.
 
Set 2 started out more tightly contested, with a pair of kills from Chidinma Onukwugha just under halfway into the set giving Hopkins a narrow 10-6 lead. Dickinson would cut the lead to three at 11-8 before a Carlsen kill ignited a 9-1 run — the junior tallied four kills herself in the run — to put the set out of reach. With the Jays up 20-9, the Red Devils never got closer than 10 before Onukwugha ended the frame with her fourth kill of the set to put Hopkins ahead 2-0.
 
Wednesday's final set saw Dickinson take its first lead of the evening at 4-3 before a quick 5-0 run that featured kills from Chiakpo and Yu put the Blue Jays jump ahead 8-4. The visitors got as close as three at 7-10, but a 4-0 run meant Hopkins had doubled up the Red Devils at 14-7. The Jays never let the opposition get within more than four from there, closing out the set and match with a 8-1 run to take it 25-14 and secure the sweep.
 
Next up for Hopkins is a tri-match against Franklin & Marshall and Shenandoah Saturday, Nov. 4, with the Blue Jays' matches set for 12 and 4:30 p.m. A win over the Diplomats would secure the No. 1 seed for Hopkins in next week's Centennial Conference Tournament.