Gophers Drop Conference Match to Catholic

BALTIMORE, MD.- Goucher (6-13, 0-4 Landmark) hosted a Landmark Conference matchup against Catholic University (7-12, 3-1 Landmark), grabbing an early lead but ultimately falling to the Cardinals in four sets (1-3).

The Gophers came out strong in the opening set after Catholic scored the first two points. Goucher quickly responded with aggressive play at the net, fueled by kills from Alex Dzhygit and Lucille Hendricks. A powerful block from Kanay Parham and Hendricks gave Goucher a 4-2 edge. Despite a short surge from Catholic, the Gophers capitalized on Cardinal errors and continued to press offensively. Kills from Dzhygit, Hendricks, and Kelsi Hockaday helped Goucher build a 13-10 lead. After a six-point run by the Cardinals flipped the score to 17-14, the Gophers answered back with critical points—including a big swing from Parham and a service ace by Hendricks—securing the set 25-18.

In the second set, Catholic opened with early momentum before a kill from AaShyah De Vries off a setup by Alex Jordan slowed them down. Despite continued offensive efforts from Hendricks and Dzhygit, Catholic pulled away with a dominant 16-7 lead. Late kills from Liv DeBiasio and Hendricks weren't enough to close the gap, as the Cardinals claimed the set 25-13.

The third set started with promise for Goucher, as Parham delivered a quick spike to put the Gophers on the board. However, a string of Goucher hitting errors allowed Catholic to go on a five-point run. The Gophers tried to battle back with kills from DeBiasio, De Vries, and Hendricks, taking advantage of Cardinal mistakes. Despite the effort, Catholic controlled the tempo and took the set 25-15.

Goucher jumped to a 3-1 lead in the fourth set thanks to early attacks by De Vries and Hendricks. Catholic responded quickly, regaining control with a 9-5 advantage. Goucher fought back with back-to-back kills from Sofia Ortiz and DeBiasio, followed by strong swings from Dzhygit and Hockaday. But Catholic continued to push offensively, extending their lead to 19-10. Hendricks added a final kill for the Gophers before the Cardinals sealed the match with a 25-12 win in the fourth.

Hendricks led Goucher with seven kills, followed closely by De Vries with six. Ortiz topped the assist column with 13, while Jordan contributed 11. Defensively, Athena Savick anchored the back row with 15 digs, part of Goucher's 49 total for the match.

The Gophers return to action on Friday, October 17, when they host Scranton in another Landmark Conference showdown.