Mountain Hawks Secure 3-0 Sweep Over Bellarmine

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Lehigh volleyball’s weekend at James Madison University continued Saturday for an afternoon tilt against the Bellarmine Knights. The Mountain Hawks rode a .291 team hitting percentage to a 3-0 sweep.

Lehigh (3-2) opened the first set with a 3-0 run, but Bellarmine (2-4) responded with five unanswered points of their own. After some back and forth, the Mountain Hawks began to pull away, eventually leading by a score of 19-13. The Mountain Hawks secured set point at 24-16 and held on to secure a 25-20 set one victory.

 The Mountain Hawks picked up where they left off in the second, quickly gaining a 9-3 advantage. Trailing 14-9, Bellarmine conducted a 7-1 run to get themselves back into the set and take the lead. Lehigh landed a punch back, outscoring Bellarmine 7-2 to reach set point at 24-20. The Knights pushed within one, but a Natalie Luscomb kill secured a 25-23 win in set two.

Lehigh once again started strong to begin the third set, gaining an 8-5 lead in the early stages of the frame. The Knights kept it close the whole way through, eventually culminating in a tie at 23-23. Needing two points to close out the match, kills from Luscomb and first-year Mary Massias secured the victory for the Mountain Hawks.

Luscomb had an excellent day offensively, notching 14 kills on an impressive .478 hitting percentage. Junior Alysia Fingall also had an efficient offensive showing, tallying 14 kills on a .455 hitting percentage. Massias also reached double-digits with 11 kills.

Sophomore Grace Slovensky and junior Abby Felkai added 18 and 17 assists respectively. Sophomore Sophia Bond paced Lehigh with 16 digs while senior Madison McCartney led the way defensively with five total blocks.

Abby Julius led the Knights with 12 kills on a .444 hitting percentage.

The Mountain Hawks will conclude action from this weekend’s tournament on Sunday, September 7 at 2 p.m. against host James Madison.

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