Ravens Volleyball split a pair of matches to open their 2026 season on Thursday, defeating the Bethany Swedes in three sets and losing to the University of Saint Mary Spires in five sets.
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Ravens sweep Bethany
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The Ravens opened their 2026 campaign with a convincing 3-0 sweep of the Bethany Swedes in the opening match of the Benedictine Quad.
The Ravens overcame five service errors to win the opening set 25-17.
Stefania Scomazzon had 5 kills in the first set and
Barbara Terra added 4 kills as the Ravens took a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Ravens convincingly won the second set, 25-16. They jumped out to an early 10-5 lead only to see the Swedes cut the Ravens lead to 11-8. It was all Benedictine after that, as the Ravens went on a 9-4 run to take control of the set and win by 9 points.
Scomazzon had a dominant set, notching 7 kills.
The Ravens buried the Swedes in the final set, a 25-9 thumping. The Ravens jumped out to an 8-0 lead on Scomazzon's 14
th kill of the match, and then pushed their lead to 19-5.
Scomazzon's match-high 15
th kill made it 23-8 in favor of the Ravens as they earned the three-set sweep.
Terra added 9 kills,
JoJo Vander Woude had 5, and
Bridget O'Sullivan chipped in 4 kills.
Riley Hunt had 4 block assists to lead the Ravens, with Scomazzon and Terra each adding 2 more.
Wren VanCleave had 31 assists and 3 service aces. The Ravens rebounded from a tough serving first set to finish with 7 aces and 11 total service errors in the match.
Kelly DeMeulenaere added 2 aces to go along with 13 digs.
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Ravens and Spires go the distance
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The Ravens did not get off to a good start in Thursday's second match as the USM Spires raced out to an 8-1 lead, then carried that to a 25-12 win in the opening set. Scomazzon and Vander Woude each had 3 kills in the first set.
The Ravens bounced back with a strong second set, leveling the match at 1-1 with a 25-17 win. Scomazzon had 5 kills and an ace in the second set.
A tight third set finished in the Ravens favor as the home side won 25-22 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Spires took an early 7-4 lead, but the Ravens went on a 6-0 run to move in front 10-7. After USM got within 1 point, Terra had 4-straight kills to put the Ravens up 15-10. The Ravens kept the lead the remainder of the set and moved to within one set of winning the match.
The Ravens nearly won it in the fourth set, but the Spires battled back from match point to win 26-24 and level the match at 2-2.
The Ravens trailed 18-12 at one point but three-straight aces by
Ava Penuel helped kick-start a 6-0 run. USM showed their own resilience, though, winning the set to send the match to a fifth and deciding set.
The fifth set belonged to the Spires from start to finish. USM raced out to an 8-2 lead before the Ravens gained their footing. It was too late, though, as the Spires went on to win the set 15-9, and the match 3-2.
Terra had a team-high 16 kills and Scomazzon had 14 kills and 3 aces.
Bridget O'Sullivan added 8 kills, and
Ava Penuel had 6 aces. DeMeulenaere had 19 digs and VanCleave had 40 assists.
The Ravens (1-1) get right back at it, taking on Crowley's Ridge at 3 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21 at home.
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