Site: Misenheimer, N.C.

Scores:
Meredith 3, Salem 1 (20-25, 25-23, 25-19, 25-10)
Salem 3, Pfeiffer 1 (27-25, 25-13, 22-25, 25-20)

Records: Salem (20-9, 12-6 USA South) / Meredith (17-9, 10-6 USA South) / Pfeiffer (7-24, 5-13 USA South)

Up Next:
Salem vs. Meredith—USA South Conference Tournament First Round (Tuesday, November 1st)

MISENHEIMER, N.C. — A number of events have transpired since the Salem volleyball earned its only win of the 2021 regular season campaign, which came in five sets over Mary Baldwin 364 days ago in Misenheimer, N.C. Among them was one of the most historic runs in USA South Conference history during the 2022 season, which was capped off by the Spirits claiming a 27-25, 25-13, 22-25, 25-20 victory over Pfeiffer on October 29th.

Salem, which was picked to finish ninth in the USA South Conference in the preseason polls released on August 26, 2022, after just one victory in 2021, capped off its second 20-win season in program history with a 20-9 overall mark.

The Spirits finished 12-6 in league action—which resulted in the most conference wins in program history—and established the single-season mark for the best turnaround in league history along the way. With 19 more wins than the previous season, Salem bested the 2010 Greensboro volleyball team's mark of 16 wins, for the best turnaround in league history. By virtue of the 12-6 record, and fourth-place finish in the league, Salem will host Meredith in the first round of the conference tournament on Tuesday evening in Winston-Salem, N.C.

USA SOUTH CONFERENCE BIGGEST WIN IMPROVEMENTS FROM ONE SEASON TO NEXT

One of the keys to Salem's success in 2022 came when head coach Barry Rymer added 11 first-year players, which included Aspen Bradley, Ella Brameus and Ashlyn Wood. On Saturday afternoon, Bradley combined for 18 kills against Meredith and Pfeiffer, to give her both the first-year and program record for most single-season kills.

Rymer's unit not only posted the second 20-win season in program history, but it established the best winning percentage (.680) in the process. The Spirits claimed their ninth road win of the season, three more than any other team in program history, in the regular season finale against Pfeiffer.

Meredith 3, Salem 1

Ella Brameus sparked the Salem offense with a team-high 10 kills, while Abrielle Eckenroth and Valeria Rosa Lopez both closed the match with nine apiece. Lopez was also an active defender with a team-high 21 digs, while Macy Nelson tallied 11 and Ashlyn Wood reached double-digit digs with 10.

Salem struggled to find its usual offensive rhythm, posting a .185 attack percentage, due in large part to 23 miscues. Wood quarterbacked the offensive attack with 20 assists, while Ashlee Peek closed with 19.

FIRST SET RECAP
The Spirits opened the match by delivering 14 kills and a .256 attack percentage in the first set, establishing a 10-7 lead following back-to-back kills by Brameus and Aspen Bradley. A series of kills off the hand of Eckenroth kept Salem in the lead, 18-15, before the Avenging Angels trimmed that margin to one with a Spirit miscue. Two kills by Bradley, coupled with slams from Eckenroth and Brameus, gave Salem the five-point win.

SECOND SET RECAP
Meredith's offense responded to the challenge laid down in the first with 18 kills and a .280 attack percentage. The two teams endured three ties, reaching an eight-all deadlock, before Anna Rymer provided Salem with a 10-8 lead with a kill. The Avenging Angels retaliated by scoring 10 of the next 16 points, grabbing a two-point lead with a kill from Mac Stafford. Three ties later, with the set knotted at 23, a service ace by Emily Emerson along with a Salem attack error, allowed Meredith to grab the two-point win.

THIRD SET RECAP
Meredith carried over momentum from the second set victory into the opening phases of the third, jumping out to a 14-10 lead behind a kill from Lauren Bissette and a service ace from Hailey Long. Two kills each from Eckenroth and Lopez kept Salem within striking distance, 17-16, before a 6-1 run by the Avenging Angels put them two points from the victory. The Spirits were unable to stave off defeat as a kill from Long and a service ace by Hannah Jo Jablonski gave Meredith the 2-1 advantage.

FOURTH SET RECAP
Looking to even the match at 2-2, Salem capitalized on a series of early slams from Wood, Bradley and Lopez to make for a 4-3 Meredith lead. However, the Avenging Angels answered with a 10-0 run, with Lexie House in serve, who emerged with five service aces in the run. Brooklyn Snow halted the run with a kill and Lopez added a service ace, giving Salem its seventh point. Five unforced errors down the stretch, coupled with a kill from Stafford, secured the four-set win for the Avenging Angels.

Salem 3, Pfeiffer 1

Sophomore Anna Rymer emerged with a match-high 16 kills, finishing with a .538 attack percentage, as Salem earned the four-set win over Pfeiffer. She was joined offensively by Brooklyn Snow (10 kills) and Aspen Bradley (nine), as Salem finished with 55 total kills and a .258 attack percentage. The offense was led by setters Ashlee Peek and Ashlyn Wood, who came through with 23 and 18 sets, respectively.

Ella Brameus closed out a solid defensive outing with 12 digs, while Macy Nelson equaled her teammate with 12 digs for the Spirits' back row. Wood contributed 11 for Salem to cap off her 11th double-double of the slate.

FIRST SET RECAP
The Spirits came out firing on all cylinders in the match, posting 14 kills and a .308 attack percentage in the first set. With the game knotted at four, Brooklyn Snow sparked the Salem offense with a kill, which resulted in a 7-2 run and a 11-7 lead. Pfeiffer rallied to pull even at 13, but Wood came through with a kill and Rymer added a slam of her own, to stretch the Spirits' lead to 17-13. The resilient Falcons again rallied and put together a 6-2 run to draw even at 19. The two teams would endure five ties in the next 12 points before a set error by Pfeiffer coupled with a Rymer ace provided Salem with the 27-25 victory.

SECOND SET RECAP
The second set victory for Salem came by virtue of solid offense, which tallied 14 kills, and the Spirits' defense that allowed just four Pfeiffer kills. Bradley broke a three-all deadlock with a slam that was followed by a Brameus service ace and a Lopez kill. Snow drove home a kill to put Salem into double figures, 10-6, and the fifth-year senior added two more kills in a scoring stretch to extend the margin to 17-6. After a series of Pfeiffer points, Lopez and Snow responded with kills to get the Spirits offense back on track as Salem secured the 12-point win.

THIRD SET RECAP
Facing a 2-0 deficit in the match, Pfeiffer responded with 17 kills in the third frame to pick up the victory. The Falcons grabbed a 6-3 lead early on, but Salem fought back to tie the set at six all by virtue of a block from Snow and Rymer. Three ties later, with the match at 10-all, Salem took advantage of three set miscues to grab a 14-11 lead on a Bradley slam. Pfeiffer answered by scoring nine of the next 15 points, pulling even at 20, before kills from Mattie Burris and Madison Honeycutt secured the three-point victory for the Falcons.

FOURTH SET RECAP
Looking to close out the Falcons in the fourth set, Salem responded with 17 kills and a .325 attack percentage, which marked the best in the respective statistical categories in a single set for Salem in the match. Leading 10-6, following a kill from Rymer, Salem witnessed a comeback by the Falcons that drew the set even at 13-all. Three ties later, Rymer came through with the first of two kills to help Salem forge in front 20-16. The Falcons responded with three straight, slicing the margin to one, but three kills from Bradley and one each by Lopez and Snow gave Salem the victory.

SALEM NOTES
-Meredith avenged an earlier 3-2 setback to Salem in Raleigh with a four-set win in Misenheimer, N.C., marking the first-ever win by either squad in the head-to-head series at a neutral site.
-The Spirits finished 12-6 in league action, resulting in the most conference wins in program history, and established the single-season mark for the best turnaround in league history along the way. With 19 more wins than the previous season, Salem bested the 2010 Greensboro volleyball team's mark of 16 wins, for the best turnaround in league history.
-On Saturday afternoon, Bradley combined for 18 kills against Meredith and Pfeiffer, to give her both the first-year and program record for most single-season kills (335). She surpassed the previous all-time mark of Kylie Taffer (330) and first-year mark of Taylor Moulton (329).
-Rymer's unit not only posted the second 20-win season in program history, but it established the best winning percentage (.680) in Salem volleyball history. The Spirits claimed their ninth road win of the season, three more than any other team in program history, in the regular season finale against Pfeiffer.
-Ella Brameus is sixth in Salem history in single season digs (360). She now trails Taylor Moulton's 2017 mark of 393 digs for fifth-most.
-Ella Brameus made her impact felt in the service game with a pair of aces, giving her 49 on the slate. The Chicago, Ill., native is now fourth in single-season aces with 49, seven off the record by Hillary McPhatter.