For John Carroll women’s volleyball, there is certainly a lot to celebrate after this past weekend.
On Friday, Sept. 8, the Blue Streaks took a weekend trip four hours east to Western New York for the St. John Fisher/Nazareth College tournament.
In their first matchup, John Carroll defeated the host school, Nazareth, 3-1. In the tournament opener, the Blue Streaks showcased their strength right from the beginning. John Carroll immediately established a 9-6 lead. A powerful five-point streak, led by three impressive kills from Jessica Liddle ‘25, allowed the Blue and Gold to surge ahead, leading Nazareth 14-7.
This advantage proved impossible to overcome, especially when Marissa Lynch ‘25 hit her stride. Lynch contributed three of John Carroll’s last five points, delivering an outstanding performance during the pivotal moments of the 25-14 set victory.
With the match tied at one, both teams had the opportunity to seize momentum. The first-year cohort made a significant impact early in the third set, with Hailey Williams ‘27, Natalie Glowe ‘27 and Mary Kate Sheehan ‘27 all contributing crucial plays to ignite a promising 11-4 lead.
Thanks to the efforts of Liddle and others, this lead quickly expanded to 17-7. John Carroll’s athleticism at the net prevented any potential comeback, as they tallied four blocks to thwart Nazareth’s momentum. Liddle sealed the set with a kill, ending it at 25-16.
The Blue Streaks continued to show their dominance against SUNY Geneseo and St. John Fisher by taking home two more wins on the second day of the tournament.
Liddle shined during the sets against the Geneseo Golden Knights as well, adding a kill for the first point of the initial set. The Blue Streaks maintained their composure under pressure and Lynch sealed the deal with her third kill of the game, securing a 27-25 victory in the set.
Glowe led their serving line, which made it quite difficult for the Knights to respond. Jenn Follmer ‘24 also led the team with 11 kills in this matchup and scored the final two points, sealing the set at 25-15.
In the second game against St. John Fisher, Lexi MacDonald ‘24 shined with some solid digs and Kendra Dziubinski ‘26 amplified the match energy with some effective blocks. “There’s nothing better than competing against good teams and receiving the outcome that we did…every game is preparing us for OAC play,” summarized MacDonald.
“This team has so much potential.”
Maddie Maziarz ‘24 remained a steady presence on the court for the second day of the tournament, leading the team with 16 assists and a total of 33 assists for the day.
The Blue Streaks finished the weekend strong, 3-0 record, making their overall record 6-2.
After a very successful weekend, the Blue Streaks will head to Hiram and Allegheny College on Saturday, Sept. 16 for the Allegheny tournament.