> Site:
Varsity Gym | Winston-Salem, N.C.
>Results:
Salem 3, Mary Baldwin 0 (25-11, 25-16, 25-9)
Salem 3, Roanoke 0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-22)
>Records:
Salem (28-5, 15-3 USA South)
Mary Baldwin (2-25, 0-17 USA South)
Roanoke (17-11)
>Next Matches
Salem vs. Brevard | Nov. 12 | 6 p.m. | Varsity Gym
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Salem volleyball team capped off its 2024 Senior Day by earning a share of the USA South Conference regular season title with a 3-0 sweep (25-11, 25-16, 25-9) of Mary Baldwin. In the second match, Salem stretched its home court winning streak to 18 straight with a 25-16, 25-19, 25-22 triumph against Roanoke in non-conference action. The Spirits, who are co-champions along with Southern Virginia, notched their first share of a league title since joining the USA South in 2016. Salem will head into the conference tournament, facing Brevard, as Southern Virginia will be the top seed by virtue of tiebreaker wins over Methodist.
The Spirits defied the USA South Conference Preseason Polls, which placed Salem sixth, and saw a series of individual accomplishments on the afternoon. Salem wrapped up the regular season with a program-record in overall wins (28) and conference wins (15). First year setter
Leah Rymer finished the regular season with a program-record 1,032 assists. Meanwhile, teammate
Aspen Bradley came through with 406 kills on the slate, also a program first.
Salem 3, Mary Baldwin 0
Aspen Bradley drove home a match-high 14 kills, posting a .565 attack percentage after committing just one error, while
Leah Rymer dished out 22 assists in a three-set win (25-11, 25-16, 25-9) over Mary Baldwin.
The Spirits tallied 36 kills in the match, finishing with a .362 team attack percentage, as
Anna Rymer contributed six kills. Teammate
Bella Mann added five, while
Adalyn Raney finished with five kills.
McKenzie Tullock (10 digs) and
Leah Rymer (seven) teamed with
Haley King, who notched two assisted blocks, to highlight a defensive unit that held Mary Baldwin to 20 kills and an 0.036 attack percentage.
FIRST SET: The Spirits offense posted a .391 attack percentage in the opening frame, highlighted by 13 kills. Separated by a 7-5 margin, Bradley drove home three kills, Raney added one of her own and
Jolina Bun came through with a service ace to stretch the lead to six. King got into the act with a slam of her own, while Tullock added a service ace, resulting in a 20-7 score. Raney came through with a kill down the stretch to clinch the opening set.
SECOND SET: The momentum from the first set carried over into the second as Salem opened with a 6-2 lead. A Bradley slam, followed by an assisted block from King and
Jacie Jarvis, put the Spirits into double figures. Leading 17-13, Salem used two service aces by Bun and a
Leah Rymer kill, to make for a 21-15 lead. Bradley came through with two kills down the stretch, while King and
Anna Rymer added one each, to provide the 25-16 margin.
THIRD SET: Looking to seize its 17th win at home, 16th in three sets, Salem capped off the match with 12 kills and a 0.500 attack percentage, while holding the Fighting Squirrels to a 0.000 hitting percentage. With
Leah Rymer in serve, Salem converted three kills and quickly opened a 5-1 lead in the third. That margin moved to seven, 10-3, following a timely service ace from
Makailey Albright. Bradley added two kills, extending the Salem margin to 15-6, but Mary Baldwin countered with three points to make for an eight-point difference. Mann drove home two kills, capping off a 5-0 run for the Spirits, putting the margin at 21-8.
Anna Rymer added an ace, while Mann came through with her fifth kill of the game, to complete the win for the Spirits.
Salem 3, Roanoke 1
Senior
Anna Rymer capped off her regular season finale with a team-best 11 kills, while teammates
Maia Johnson and
Aspen Bradley contributed 10 apiece. That trio posted at least a .300 attack percentage individually, with Rymer closing at .558, Bradley with .500 and Johnson with a .333.
Ellie Scherer added nine kills while
Bella Mann posted a .636 attack percentage, a match-high, penetrating the Roanoke defense with eight kills in 11 total attacks.
Leah Rymer handed out 41 assists, including her 1,000th of the season, which came on her eighth of the first set. Those 41 dishes helped Salem finish with 50 kills and a combined .358 attack percentage.
McKenzie Tullock led the way for the back row with 10 digs, while
Leah Rymer had seven and
Olivia Torres finished with six. Torres' biggest contribution came in the service game, where she tallied four.
FIRST SET: The Spirits enjoyed their best hitting percentage of the match in the opening frame, posting 15 kills in 29 total attacks (.483 attack pct.). Four Salem hitters tallied three kills apiece along the way. Separated by a 9-8 margin with Torres in serve, kills from Scherer and Johnson along with an ace helped the Spirits stretch the margin to 16-8. Mann and
Anna Rymer pushed the lead to 20-12, before kills off the hand of
Anna Rymer, Scherer and Johnson along with a
Jolina Bun service ace resulted in the 25-16 win.
SECOND SET: Johnson slammed home four kills, while
Anna Rymer added three of her own, helping Salem finish with 14 kills and a .310 attack percentage. The two teams mirrored their tough battle in the second set, reaching a six-all tie. Johnson and Mann came through with kills and the Spirits capitalized on two unforced errors to establish a 10-6 lead. Separated by one, 11-10, Johnson delivered two kills and Torres added a service ace to again spark the Spirits. The margin reached seven, 11-18, before
Anna Rymer drove home a kill and
Leah Rymer contributed a service ace which provided the 20th point. Four kills down the stretch provided the Spirits with the six-point win.
THIRD SET: Looking to close out the Maroons in three sets, Salem's offense again topped the .300 attack percentage, closing with a .312, highlighted by 21 kills in 48 total attacks. Bradley and
Anna Rymer had five kills each, while the tandem of Scherer and Mann posted four apiece. Looking to avoiding the sweep, Roanoke opened the third by scoring eight of the first 12 points, grabbing an 8-4 lead in the process. Four kills by the Spirits, including two from Scherer, helped Salem pull even at nine with a Torres ace. Salem would eventually score six unanswered in the rally, moving in front 13-9 on a kill from Johnson. Scherer added two kills down the stretch as Salem grabbed the 20-14 lead. Roanoke responded with a 7-1 run of its own, tying the contest at 21. However, Bradley drove home a kill and
Anna Rymer responded with two of her own, as did Mann, to completed the three-point win.
2024 USA South Volleyball Tournament Schedule (all times ET)
(All contests played at the higher-seeded team in the matchup)
First Round - Tuesday, November 12
Game 1: #8 N.C. Wesleyan at #1 Southern Virginia - 6:00pm
Game 2: #7 Brevard at #2 Salem - 6:00pm
Game 3: #6 William Peace at #3 Methodist - 7:00pm
Game 4: #5 Meredith at #4 Greensboro - 7:00pm
Semifinals - Thursday, November 14
Game 1 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner - Time TBA
Game 2 Winner vs. Game 3 Winner - Time TBA
Final - Saturday, November 16
Semifinal Winners - Time TBA
