Volleyball: Haverford’s switch has the Fords hitting cruise control

HAVERFORD — After starting the season with four straight losses, Haverford volleyball coach Alin Bilc decided to switch things up.

The big change was at the setter position, where Bilc decided to rotate sophomores Julia Timoney and Taylor Rosseel.

That decision has made quite a difference for the Fords. They’ve won six of their last seven, including a hard-fought, 3-2 Central League decision over Penncrest at home Monday.

“Absolutely,” Bilc said when asked if going with a two-setter rotation changed Haverford’s fortunes. “There’s no doubt about it. And we have another setter, Abby (Thompson). She couldn’t be here today because she is sick. We’ve been going 6-2 for the past five or six games and it’s worked out well.”

Timoney and Rosseel played a key role as the Fords (6-5, 3-1 Central League) bounced back from a 3-1 loss to Central Bucks West last Saturday, their only loss in that seven-game stretch.

The duo combined for 37 assists and eight aces to lift the Fords past the Lions for the second year in a row. Rosseel led the way with 21 assists and two aces. Timoney had 16 helpers and six aces in the 25-17, 24-26, 25-22, 21-25, 15-20 victory, Haverford’s second five-set win in its last four matches. Timoney was on the service line as the Fords ran off eight straight points to take control of the first set. She had three of her assists and one of her aces as Haverford extended a 16-15 lead to 24-17.

“We communicate well and we’re friends on and off the court,” Timoney said.

That communication has been the key to Haverford’s recent success.

“We talk about where to set the ball, who the hot hitter is and what the defense is doing to get the ball to the correct hitter,” Rosseel said.

Sydney Jones, who earned All-Delco honors in track last spring as a high jumper, was the hot hitter on this day. The junior pounded 21 kills, two blocks and also recorded three aces. However, she’s not the only weapon on the front line for the Fords. Ashley Wright (seven kills), Abigail Crowley (five kills), Keira Hornug (five kills), Caroline Scott (four kills) and senior captain Tiernagh Moore (three kills) are all capable hitters.

“The girls are playing well and they’re having fun,” Bilc said. “That’s the most important thing.”

Haverford needed every weapon in its offensive arsenal because the Lions put up quite the fight in the see-saw battle. Penncrest (4-5, 3-2) scored the last six points to take the second set and erased a five-point deficit to force a fifth set.

“We do a lot in practice where one side is down, 24, 23 or 22,” Penncrest coach Ashley Merton said. “We just made too many errors.”

Outside hitter Liz Kurcon, who recently became the first player in program history with 1,000 kills, did her best to help the Lions pull out the victory. She collected 20 kills and 17 digs.

Setter Maddy Bachovchin also came up big for the Lions with 28 assists. Outside hitter Emma Curran contributed nine kills and six digs while middle blocker Fiona O’Loughlin chipped in with eight kills.

“It was a close game,” Kurcon said. “We’ve both played good opponents and we both played our hearts out today. It stinks that we had to lose but we both played really well.”

Elsewhere in the Central League:

Garnet Valley 3, Ridley 0 >> Abby Houpt and Maddy Snelgrove were strong on defense and at the service line for the Jaguars (7-1, 4-0) in the 25-10, 25-8, 25-13 victory over the Green Raiders. Houpt recorded four aces while Snelgrove had two.

Reigning Daily Times Player of the Year Maddie Wood set the offense in motion with 37 assists. She also had four aces. Her younger sister, Sarah, had 14 kills and two aces. Kelly St. Germain pitched in with nine kills.

Strath Haven 3, Conestoga 1 >> Setters Gigi Fiordimondo, a senior, and junior Oyindamola Sondoguga showed the way in the 25-18, 25-22, 17-25, 28-26 victory with a combined 35 assists.

Sophomore Lauren McGinn was strong on the attack and defense with 16 kills, 18 digs and three aces. Junior outside hitter Jillian Surkis contributed nine kills, 11 digs and three aces. Sisters Amelia Andrews-Sullivan (eight kills, five blocks) and Sophie Andrews-Sullivan (five kills, one block) were strong at the net, while sophomore Aislin O’Neil paced the defense with 28 digs.

In nonleague action:

Chichester 3, Renaissance Academy 0 >> Caitlyn Woodall collected 21 assists, two digs and two aces as the Eagles won 25-7, 25-20, 25-21.

Danjah Bazemore was strong at the net with 10 kills and three aces. Kylee Rupertus paced the defense with 10 digs. She also had four aces and one kill. Janae Barraza came up with six digs and one kill. Morgan Wood pitched in with four kills, three digs and one ace.

Sun Valley 3, Cardinal O’Hara 2 >> All-Delco Jenna Jones posted yet another triple double to help the Vanguards take the battle between two of the top teams in the county. Jones collected 21 assists, 14 kills and 13 digs. Kate McGroarty was strong on the front line with 18 kills. Janey Kennon added 11 kills while libero Kylie Shetter paced the defense with 28 digs.

All-state junior Jasmine Sullivan had a triple double for the Lions. She posted 24 assists, 19 kills, 15 digs, two blocks and one ace. Freshman Maggie Carcillo also had a triple double with 19 assists, 15 digs, 14 kills and two aces. Julie Riley added 25 digs and two aces, while Kerigan Patterson pitched in with 21 digs and six kills.