ST. LOUIS, MO – The Johns Hopkins volleyball team took on sixth-ranked Emory on Day 2 of the East West Classic Saturday afternoon, topping the Eagles 3-1 (25-22, 24-26, 25-20, 25-18) to finish the weekend undefeated with a pair of wins against top 10 opponents.
 
For the third straight match it was Simone Adam leading the way in kills at 15 — the junior totaled 39 kills on an impressive .452 hitting percentage across the weekend's three matches —, with Simrin Carlsen (14) and Jilienne Widener (10) joining her in double figures. Kate Danaher tallied a match-best 23 assists while defensively it was Carlsen and Pamela Chiakpo pacing the team in digs and blocks with 13 and five respectively.
 
Emory (4-1) entered the day having won their lone game Friday in dramatic, come-from-behind fashion, but in the opening set of Saturday's match it was the Blue Jays' turn to make a comeback, climbing from down 19-10 to take the first 25-22. Hopkins had no answer for the Eagles' attack early leading to the large deficit, but with their backs against the wall down nine it was Carlsen and Adam — the pair combined for nine kills in the set — sparking what would turn into a set-closing 15-3 run capped off by a Chiakpo kill to go in front.
 
Errors were aplenty in a second set that saw both teams' hitting percentage drop below .100 before a late Emory run leveled things at one. It appeared as though Hopkins had the set in hand after consecutive Eagle errors served as the 10^th lead change of the frame and put the Blue Jays in front 23-21, but a 4-1 response by Emory forced extra points before Jessica Majka registered the final kill to take Set 2 26-24.
 
Saturday's third set belonged to Hopkins, which upped its hitting percentage to a match-high .433 en route to the 25-20 win. The Blue Jays jumped in front 5-2 early on a pair of kills from Carlsen and a rejection by Ivy Swafford and Brookyln Pater, getting their lead to as large as five at 13-8 before the Eagles made their charge back. Hopkins' lead quickly turned into a deficit following a 9-3 Emory run that made it 17-16, but the Blue Jays turned once again to Adam and Widener to ignite an 8-2 response to retake the 24-19 lead. An Eagles kill stopped the bleeding momentarily, but it was Pater coming up with the final kill to take Set 3.
 
Carlsen registered Hopkins' first two kills in the fourth set but it was the Eagles taking an early 6-2 lead. Kills from Swafford and Adam as well as a slew of Emory errors trimmed the lead to one before another Carlsen kill — the senior's third of five in the frame — kickstarted a 10-1 run that would give the Blue Jays the lead for good at 21-14. A service error gave the Eagles back control, but the lead was too much to overcome with Carlsen's 14^th kill, Chiakpo's fifth block and a pair of Adam enders closing the set, 25-18 and match, 3-1.
 
Next up for Hopkins is its home-opener next weekend where they will take on Ithaca Friday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. before battling Susquehanna and Marymount Saturday the 14^th in the Greg "Gio" Giovenazzi Memorial Tournament.