Johns Hopkins University Athletics

BALTIMORE, MD – In a matchup of the top two teams in the Centennial Conference standings, it was visiting Swarthmore overcoming a two-set deficit to knock off host Johns Hopkins in a five-set thriller in Goldfarb Gymnasium on Wednesday night.  The win improves the Garnet to 12-3 overall and 5-0 in the Centennial, while the Blue Jays had their seven-match winning streak snapped and fall slip to 10-6 overall and 3-1 in the Centennial.
 
After winning the third and fourth sets, the Garnet carried the momentum into the fifth and deciding set and sprinted to a quick 4-1 lead, only to see the Blue Jays respond with a four-point run of their own to grab a 5-4 lead.  Three straight kills, including two by Isabel Adam, gave the Garnet an 8-5 lead, but again the Blue Jays rallied to pull even at 9-all on a Bethany Sherwood ace.  Johns Hopkins was within one (11-10) after an Ella Wismer kill, but Adam and Ella Tsai found the floor from the edge and Tsai would finish it at 15-12 with her 22^nd kill of the night.
 
Early on, the Blue Jays grabbed the first set as they never trailed in easing to a 25-13 victory.  Johns Hopkins led just 6-4 before using a 13-6 spurt to pull out to a 19-10 lead.  Ivy Swafford (3), Josephine Kinlan (2) and Wismer (2) combined for seven kills during the spree for the Blue Jays, who hit .421 in the set with 17 kills against just one attacking error in the opening frame.  A Wismer kill and an attacking error by the Garnet accounted for the final two points for the Blue Jays.
 
The hot-hitting carried over into the second set for the Blue Jays, who trailed early, grabbed the lead for good at 6-5 and gradually pulled away to take the frame, 25-16.  Again it was a mid-set spurt that created separation for the Blue Jays, who took the 6-5 lead on a Swarthmore service error and that was the first point in a 10-3 run for Johns Hopkins.  Swafford again fueled the rally as she collected three kills, including one that gave the Jays a 15-8 lead.  Swarthmore would get within four at 17-13 on an Adam kill, but Hopkins would score seven of the final 10 points to grab the set.  Kinlan had two kills down the stretch and Emma Wang ended it with a strike of her own.

The Garnet jumped back into the match by taking the third set, 25-23.  Swarthmore never trailed in the set and led by as many as five at 10-5 on an Adam kill, but the Garnet found themselves tied at 10 after a quick five-point Blue Jay run.  There were ties at every point from 19 through 23, but a Blue Jay service error at 23-all gave the Garnet set point and Adam and Maggie Rankin blocked a Sherwood attempt in the middle to keep Swarthmore alive.
 
After the teams evenly split the first 18 points of the fourth set, the Garnet grabbed control with a 7-1 spurt that was fueled by a pair of Kate Roberts service aces.  Swarthmore's 16-10 lead was as big as eight at 22-14 after Adam and Rankin again combined for a block.  A Tsai kill a short time later put the Garnet on the brink at 24-18, but a Wismer kill sparked a four-point run that made it 24-22 with the Blue Jays serving, but a service error sent it to the fifth set.
 
Tsai (22) and Adam (15) combined for 37 kills for the Garnet, who also got 20 digs from Melissa Eyer. Maya Sheridan (23) and Lois Matsukawa (22) totaled 45 assists on the night and the Garnet collected 10 blocks in the win; Rankin had a hand in six of the 10.

Swafford, who entered the match ranked 10^th in the nation in kills per set, paced the Blue Jays with 24 kills, one shy of her career high, while Wismer (16) and Kinlan (10) combined for 26 kills.  The 16 kills for Wismer were two more than she had all season coming in after being limited to just four matches prior to tonight.  Nicole Tuszynski had a team-high 21 digs and Annika Anderson had a team-best and career-high 34 assists.
 
Johns Hopkins will return to action on Saturday. October 17 when the Blue Jays welcome Franklin & Marshall to Goldfarb Gymnasium (1 pm).
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