BALTIMORE, MD - The Johns Hopkins volleyball team went 2-0 in the final day of the Greg Giovanazzi Memorial Tournament Saturday afternoon, sweeping Beloit 3-0 in its opener before besting No. 19 Wittenberg University 3-2 in a dramatic five-setter. This was the first match of the young season that went the distance for the Jays, who completed the come-from-behind victory after trailing two sets to one early.
 
Game 1: Johns Hopkins 3, Beloit 0
 
The Jays' (2-1) were in control from the jump in Saturday's opener, shutting out the Buccaneers (0-3) 25-5, 25-18, 25-11 to secure their first win of the season. Ivy Swafford finished the match with a game-high nine kills, followed by Chidinma Onukwugha (8) and Roxy Karrer (7). Onukwugha also paced the team in blocks with seven while freshman Alejandra Sol finished with a game-high 10 digs and four aces in her first collegiate start.
 
Hopkins took an early lead in the first set and never looked back, capitalizing on kills from Virag Murphy, Karrer, Brooklyn Pater and a pair of aces by Swafford and Sol to go ahead 9-1. The sides traded points before another 6-1 run put the Jays up 17-4. The Buccaneers got the ensuing point on a Hopkins service error before Pater's second kill of the stanza sparked a set-closing 8-0 run to hand the Jays the first set 25-5.
 
The second set was more tightly contested, as a 5-0 run early on saw the visitors go up 8-5, but a kill and block by Onukwugha paired with a Helena Swaak-ace knotted the game at eight. Beloit retook the lead at 9-8 before a 5-0 run by the Jays put Hopkins ahead 13-9. Another 3-1 spurt with kills coming from Eloise Estrada and Pater put the Jays up 16-10, but an 8-3 response from the Buccaneers cuz the lead to just one. As was the case in the opening set, however, a 6-0 run that included a trio of service aces by Sol clinched the 25-18 Set 2 win for Hopkins.
 
The final set of Saturday's opener saw the Jays hold a 6-4 advantage before Beloit closed the gap to 8-7. From there, an Onukwugha kill ignited a 10-0 run — Hopkins' largest of the tournament — to take the commanding 18-7 lead. The run was highlighted by kills from Estrada, Swafford, a pair of service aces from Karrer and a trio of blocks for Onukwugha.
 
The Buccaneers went on a mini 3-1 run to make it a nine-point game before a 6-1 run for the Jays — the final point of which came on Elysa Pulliam's first career denial — closed the set 25-11 and completed the 3-0 sweep for the Jays.
 
Game 2: Johns Hopkins 3, Wittenberg 2
 
Saturday's final match was one driven entirely by momentum, with no set being decided by less than six points. Wittenberg won two of the opening three sets to give themselves the edge, but Hopkins would not be denied the win, forcing a fifth set before claiming the 18-25, 25-19, 18-25, 25-17, 15-8 victory in front of an impressive home crowd.
 
Simone Adam led the way offensively with a season-high 17 kills while Swaak finished with a game-high 37 assists. Defensively, Price continued her impressive day at the net, racking up another four blocks while Grace Reininga tallied 12 digs to lead the Jays. Two Hopkins players tallied double doubles, with Karrer posting 10 kills and 12 digs and Swaak adding 12 digs to go along with her double-digit helpers. The Tigers (1-2) were paced offensively by Tyler Linkart with 14 kills and defensively by Ally White who racked up a game-high 14 digs.
 
The first set was as back-and-forth an affair as you will find, with each side going on multiple 3-0 and 4-0 runs before the teams found themselves knotted at 16. From there Wittenberg went on a set-deciding 8-1 run to go up 24-17. An attack error stunted the Tigers' run, but a kill from Linkart ended the first frame 25-18 in favor of Wittenberg.
 
Set No. 2 told a different story, as it was the Jays jumping out to a 4-0 lead early via a pair of Adam kills as well as a block — Adam finished third on the team with three denials in the contest. The Tigers worked their way back into the game, eventually using a 4-0 spurt to take an 8-7 lead, but a kill from Swafford knotted the game back up at eight immediately. Following the tie, Hopkins went on a 6-3 run that forced a Wittenberg timeout, but the damage had already been done, as a Karrer kill would make it 18-16 before the Jays went on yet another run, outscoring Wittenberg 7-3 to close the set out 25-19.
 
Saturday's third set started out level with a kill from Alice Yu making it 5-5, but an 9-1 run by the Tigers quickly put the set out of reach. A 7-2 run late in the set sparked by another Adam kill made it a six-point set, but a 3-1 response closed the set 18-25 and put the Jays down 2-1.
 
At the start of the fourth set, head coach Matt Troy subbed in Onukwugha for the first time all match, a decision that would pay dividends in the ensuing two sets. The junior middle started off Hopkins' attack with her first kill of the night to give the Jays a 2-1 lead. A trio of service errors from the visitors kept Hopkins ahead 5-3 before a quick 6-3 run put the Jays up five.
 
A kill from the Tigers stopped the bleeding momentarily, but another 6-1 run that featured to Onukwugha kills pushed the advantage to 17-8. The sides then traded 3-0 runs before the set eventually ended with yet another attack error from Wittenberg, giving the Jays the 25-17 victory and forcing a decisive fifth set.
 
A 2-0 opening run to start the fifth was answered by Hopkins, who went on a 4-0 run of their own with two kills coming from Adam to take th 4-2 lead. Wittenberg scored five of the next seven points to go up 7-6, but another kill from Adam would tie the game again and give Sol an opportunity she would not pass up. Entering the contest in the third set as a serving and defensive specialist, Sol stifled the Tigers' backline and helped the Jays rattle off nine consecutive points — four of which were ended at the hands of Onukwugha. Up 14-8 after an attack error by Hopkins ended the run, Karrer took a set from Swaak and sent it hard off the blockers before it touched down, completing the comeback and securing the 3-2 win for the Jays.
 
Hopkins is back in action starting Friday, Sept. 8 where they will compete in the East West Classic against Washington University, Colorado College, and third-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.