Box Score
SALISBURY, Md. – The top-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team fought hard and overcame a big deficit in the third set to post its fifth straight sweep as the Captains took down Salisbury, 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-23) at the Maggs Physical Activity Center on Tuesday evening.

Bailey Jensen had a huge match for the Captains as she roped 12 kills to go along with a .478 hitting percentage. She also chipped in with five blocks to lead the defensive effort. Jessie Kolden continued her strong season as well, collecting a match-high 13 kills, while senior setter Alyssa Kidd added a double-double after notching 33 assists and 16 digs.

Coming off of four straight sweeps during the Captains Classic over the weekend, CNU (5-0) had its hands full with Salisbury (4-1), who also entered the match undefeated after sweeping the competition in its first tournament of the year. From the outset, the two teams looked evenly matched while battling back-and-forth.

In the first set, the squads traded leads with CNU securing a 10-7 advantage behind three kills from Cory Harris before Salisbury shot back and took an 18-14 edge after Jenna Shay caught fire for the Sea Gulls. Staring at a modest deficit, Harris quickly unloaded a blast to start the Captains' comeback.

Down three, CNU took advantage of a few Salisbury missteps and a crushing blow by Kolden to even the score at 19. Still knotted at 21, Jensen and Kidd launched back-to-back winners before the Sea Gulls called a timeout. Although the hosts responded with a block out of the break, a pair of service errors eventually handed the set to the Captains, 25-23.

In the second set, CNU controlled the momentum in the early going as the squad raced out to a 7-2 lead behind two kills from Kolden and back-to-back blocks by Jensen. Although the hosts eventually whittled their deficit down to two at 12-10, the Captains immediately responded. Another pair of kills by Kolden and blasts by Kidd and Jensen gave CNU an 18-12 lead heading into a Salisbury timeout.

The stoppage paid immediate dividends for the Sea Gulls as Ashley Tapley posted an ace, kill, and block on three consecutive rallies to help the hosts pull even at 19. Later, after a CNU timeout, Salisbury took its first lead of the set at 21-20.

Unfazed by the late surge, CNU regrouped in the waning moments of the frame. Christie Fellows immediately knotted the score with a laser, and after a few Sea Gull errors, she teamed with Jensen to cap off a 25-22 victory with a devastating block.

With nothing to show for their strong play in the first two sets, Salisbury raced out to a big lead in the third. Carley Todd, the reigning AVCA National Player of the Week, collected a pair of kills, while Chelsea Glowacki added two blocks on the way to a 13-6 lead for SU.

Looking squarely at their largest deficit of the year, the Captains showed incredible poise as they slowly clawed back into the set. Harris was at the forefront of the team's resurgence as the senior standout recorded a block and roped three straight kills to help the squad pull even at 16.

Still even at 18, the two teams traded blows. Every SU kill was matched by a CNU blast as the squads remained even until the final rallies of the match. Finally, after Harris roped a shot that broke a 23-23 tie, the visitors secured match point. With victory in sight, Christopher Newport put an end to the excitement as Brooke Moore tossed a lob over the net that the Sea Gulls could not quite handle to clinch the 25-23 win.

Overall, the Captains had five players reach double-digit digs, including Abby Hogge who tallied a match-high 18. Kidd, Moore, Elder, and Harris also reached the mark as the squad held the Salisbury attack to a .138 hitting percentage.

CNU will return to action on Friday when the squad kicks off the Juniata Asics Invitational in Huntingdon, Pa. with a bout against Puget Sound at 5 p.m.

---CNU---