OWINGS MILLS, MD. - The Stevenson women's volleyball team opened the 2026 season with a pair of victories on Saturday afternoon inside Owings Mills Gymnasium, earning a thrilling 3–2 victory over St. Mary's (Md.) before sweeping Eastern Mennonite, 3–0. The Mustangs took down the Seahawks by scores of 25–19, 17–25, 12–25, 25–18, and 15–13 before closing the day with a 25–17, 25–18, 25–16 victory over Eastern Mennonite. Stevenson improves to 2–0 on the season following the home-opening tri-match.
Vs. St. Mary's College of Maryland
Set 1:
Stevenson came out strong in the opening set, trading points with St. Mary's before taking control midway through the frame. With the score tied at 13–13, the Mustangs used a 5–0 run to take an 18–14 advantage, highlighted by kills from
Rachel Lenz and
Logan Burge and a service ace from
Declyn Tooze. Stevenson continued to hold the Seahawks at arm's length before closing the set on an ace from
Autumn Henry, 25–19.
Set 2:
St. Mary's answered in the second set, jumping out to an early advantage and eventually building a 19–15 lead. Stevenson continued to fight behind kills from Salazar, Lenz, Zepfel, and Burge, but the Seahawks maintained their momentum late in the frame.St. Mary's closed out the set, 25–17, to even the match at one set apiece.
Set 3:
The third set remained competitive early, with Stevenson holding a 7–6 lead before St. Mary's began to pull away. The Seahawks used a 7–0 run to turn an 11–14 deficit into a 21–11 advantage, taking control of the set.
Despite a late effort from the Mustangs, St. Mary's closed out the third set, 25–12, taking a 2–1 lead in the match.
Set 4:
Facing elimination, Stevenson responded with a strong fourth set. After St. Mary's opened with a 3–0 lead, the Mustangs quickly settled in and took an 8–6 advantage behind kills from Burge and Lenz and a service ace from Lenz.
Stevenson continued to build its lead, using a 5–0 run late in the set to move ahead 20–12. Tooze played a key role during the stretch with back-to-back service aces, while Lenz and Burge added kills to keep the Mustangs in control. Stevenson eventually closed out the set, 25–18, forcing a decisive fifth set.
Set 5:
The deciding set featured another back-and-forth affair, with neither team able to gain more than a two-point advantage until the closing moments. Stevenson held a 12–10 lead following a kill from Burge, but St. Mary's responded with two straight points to tie the set at 12–12.
After a St. Mary's timeout, Lenz delivered a crucial kill to put the Mustangs within one point of victory. On the final rally, Lenz finished off the comeback with another kill as Stevenson secured the 15–13 victory and completed the 3–2 comeback win.
Lenz led all Mustangs with 15 kills while hitting .345, while Zepfel added 10 kills and a .348 hitting percentage. Salazar finished with 10 kills, and Burge contributed eight kills. Tooze directed the offense with 21 assists, while
Isabella Terra recorded 22 digs to anchor the defensive effort.
Vs. Eastern Mennonite
Set 1:
Stevenson opened the match with an early 2–0 run, getting kills from \Burge and \Lenz to take an early advantage. The Mustangs continued to build momentum behind Lenz and \Salazar, with Stevenson eventually taking a 13–7 lead following a Salazar kill.
Eastern Mennonite answered with a 4–0 run to cut the deficit to 13–11, but the Mustangs quickly regained control. Stevenson used a 5–0 run late in the set, highlighted by consecutive kills from Lenz and a kill from
Lillianna Hornickle, to extend the lead to 23–17. Hornickle and Salazar combined for a block before an Eastern Mennonite attack error gave Stevenson the 25–17 opening-set victory.
Set 2:
Eastern Mennonite grabbed an early 4–2 lead in the second set, but Stevenson responded with a balanced offensive attack. Burge recorded a pair of kills early in the frame, while
Autumn Henry added a kill to help the Mustangs even the score at 13–13.
Stevenson then took control with a 4–0 stretch, receiving a kill from Burge and an ace from
Declyn Tooze to move ahead 17–14. Lenz continued to make an impact offensively, adding a kill and a service ace as the Mustangs pushed their advantage to 23–17. A Hornickle block and an Eastern Mennonite attack error closed out the set, giving Stevenson a 25–18 win and a 2–0 match lead.
Set 3:
The Mustangs came out firing in the third set, jumping ahead 6–0 behind a pair of Tooze service aces, a block from Henry and a Henry kill. Stevenson continued to apply pressure, building a 14–4 advantage after another kill from Lenz.
Stevenson maintained its commanding lead throughout the remainder of the set. Gaus Allison helped fuel a 5–0 run that pushed the Mustangs ahead 20–6, while Burge and Henry added kills during the stretch. Eastern Mennonite made a late push, but Stevenson had built too large of a cushion. Tooze finished the match with a kill to secure the 25–16 set victory and complete the 3–0 sweep.
Lenz led the Mustangs with 11 kills while hitting .400, adding four service aces and 15.0 points. Burge finished with six kills and a .312 hitting percentage, while Henry contributed five kills on a .400 attack percentage. Tooze dished out 12 assists and recorded four service aces, while
Courtney Foose finished with 11 assists. As a team, Stevenson posted 35 kills, 31 assists and 14 service aces in the sweep.
Stevenson will hit the road for the first time this season on Tuesday, September 8, when the Mustangs travel to Catholic University. First serve is set for 7 p.m.
