Davis, Veldman Lead Dukes to Sweep of Cal Poly

Friday, September 8

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

5-2,0-0Sun Belt

Cal Poly

4-4,0-0Big West

Cal Poly

James Madison

9/8/2023 10:07:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Behind a season-high 13 kills from Sophie Davis and 12 from Miëtte Veldman, James Madison volleyball opened the Erie Insurance Invitational with a sweep over Cal Poly Friday evening.

With the win, the Dukes improved to 5-2 on the season. With the defeat, Cal Poly dropped to 4-4.

Along with her 13 kills, Davis hit .591 (13-0-22) and finished with five total blocks, including one solo, the 100^th of her career. She is now 12 solo blocks from surpassing Karla Gessler (1997-00) for second in JMU history, and eight total blocks from passing Kate Fuchs (2001-04) for second all-time in JMU history with 485.

Veldman recorded eight digs to go along with her 12 kills, while Brenya Reid accumulated eight kills. Elizabeth Helmich also finished with 13 digs, which led the team.

As a team, the Dukes tallied nine blocks and held Cal Poly to a .204 hitting percentage. Coming into tonight's game, JMU was 21^st nationally in blocks (61). JMU also picked up six service aces, bringing their total to 52 in seven games (7.43 avg.)

A trio of Mustangs finished with over eight kills. Tommi Stockham (10), Annabelle Thalken (9), and Kate Slack all led the Cal Poly attack. Stockham also nearly notched a double-double, with nine digs.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1: JMU 25-21
The Dukes set the tone right away, as the home team opened up a 7-1 lead in the first on a Helmich kill. However, after a double block from Davis and Helmich extended the lead to 10-3, the visitors bounced back with a 6-0 spurt at the service line from Lizzy Markovska, pulling to within one at 10-9. Davis shut down the Mustangs with consecutive blocks, assisted by Helmich and Rebecca Watkins. A 7-2 run was capped by back-to-back attacking errors for Cal Poly. The Dukes would cruise from there, and a kill from Alex Kwasnik closed out the first set.

Set 2: JMU 25-22
The reigning Sun Belt defensive Player of The Year continued to dominate, as two consecutive kills from Davis gave the home team a 2-1 lead in the second frame. After the two teams jockeyed for the lead early on, a Slack kill evened the set at 5-5. Behind the home crowd, JMU scored four of the next five points in the set, as an ace from Madilyn O'Toole extended the Dukes' lead to 13-7. The Mustangs battled back to within one point at 21-20, but
On the backs of stellar defense, JMU was able to close out the set on a dual-block from Kwasnik and Helmich.

Set 3: JMU 27-25
After JMU opened up a 3-0 lead in the third set, Cal Poly answered right back with a 7-2 run and swung ahead 7-5 on a Slack kill. However, the pendulum swung back in the Dukes' favor, as back-to-back kills from Davis gave JMU a 10-9 lead. JMU would continue to build a lead, and a Rebecca Watkins ace forced a Cal Poly timeout at 15-12. The Mustangs would not back down, as a 4-0 spurt pulled the visitors ahead 16-15. The two teams remained even through 18-18, but the Dukes tallied four of the next five to give JMU a 22-19 advantage. The Mustangs stormed back and pulled ahead 25-24 on a kill from Thalken. After a James Madison timeout, the Dukes scored three straight to take the match. A block from Kwasnik and Helmich closed out the sweep for JMU.

UP NEXT
The Dukes take on New Hampshire in the second game of the Erie Invitational, set for tomorrow at 2 p.m. The game can be streamed on ESPN+. After they fell to New Hampshire and JMU Friday, they will close out their weekend with a neutral site bout with VCU at 5 p.m. tomorrow.