(ASHLAND, Va.) – Almost everything went right for the Randolph-Macon women's volleyball team as it defeated Mary Washington in straight sets in a mutual season opener. The Yellow Jackets' offense appeared in midseason form, while defensively they shut down the Eagles multiple times up front.

The Basics

Score: Randolph-Macon 3, Mary Washington 0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-22)

Venue: Crenshaw Gym

Records: Randolph-Macon 1-0, Mary Washington 0-1

How It Happened:

• A 5-0 run early in the opening game sparked by a pair of Danielle LaRosa (Sr., Charlottesville, Va. / Abermarle) kills helped give some separation for the Jackets while forcing the Eagles to call an early timeout. It was a sign of things to come as Randolph-Macon pounded out 13 kills while hitting .500 and closed out the set with another 5-0 run for the 25-15 win.
• The momentum rolled into the second game as the Jackets jumped out to a 10-2 lead. Five of those points came on kills as the offense kept rolling. Defensively the middles made their presence known as Ashlynn Knott (So., Clarksville, Va. / Bluestone) and LaRosa paired together for consecutive rejections. Knott and Sydney Koch (Sr., Raleigh, N.C. / Sanderson) blocked another Eagles followed by a solo block by Koch to give RMC a 15-5 lead.
• A kill by Koch followed by a bad set by Mary Washington concluded the set with RMC up 25-13.
• The third set was easily the most competitive of the night with 10 ties. The final one came at 15-all at the start of another 5-0 rally capped by a Koch kill that put the Jackets up 19-15. Mary Washington was only able to cut the deficit to two once more at 22-20, but kills by LaRosa, Madison Warlick (Sr., Charlottesville, Va. / Abermarle), and Megan Bost (So., Angier, N.C. / West Johnston) gave RMC the sweep with a 25-22 decision in the third.

Inside The Numbers

• Koch dominated throughout the match as she pounded nine kills on 15 attempts for a hitting percentage of .600. On the defensive end she tallied three blocks, one of which was solo.
• It was a total team effort as Warlick joined her with nine kills for team high honors. LaRosa was one shy with eight while hitting .375 and also having three blocks.
• Knott did well defensively with three blocks on her own, and was strong offensively when called upon with four kills on nine attempts.
• The Yellow Jackets had only eight errors total in the match, their fewest since a sweep against Roanoke on October 19, 2019.
• It's the first sweep of Mary Washington since September 4, 2013 in Fredericksburg.

Up Next

The Jackets hit the road for their next eight contests. The first of those will take place at Meredith this Tuesday. First serve is currently set for 7 p.m.