Bryn Mawr, Pa. – The Owls volleyball squad took on an imposing foe in the Garnet of Swarthmore earlier Tuesday night. Tonight was also the annual Tanner's Touch match that each team in the Centennial Conference participates in. The Conference partners with the Tanner's Touch Foundation during the month of October to help raise funds and awareness for pediatric cancer. Though Bryn Mawr fought valiantly in the match, including taking the visitors the distance in the second set, Swarthmore managed to hang on and earn the victory in three sets to keep their league record unblemished. Junior Rachel Ofili led the Owls with 13 kills in the contest, while the Garnet got another solid performance out of Centennial Conference leader Sarah Wallace, who led all scorers with 17 kills.

Swarthmore (22-5, 9-0 Cent.) took the first set in relatively quick fashion, rolling to a 25-13 win in the frame. The Garnet only netted ten kills in the frame, but it was errors that hurt the Owls most. Bryn Mawr (10-15, 1-9 Cent.) was only able to tally six kills themselves, but made eleven errors in the set. The Owls actually led 2-0 early after an error by the Garnet and a kill from Ofili. Swarthmore responded with a kill of their own, but Bryn Mawr extended their lead all the way to 7-4, thanks in part to two more kills from Ofili and a kill by Sarah Gates. However, that was the last lead the Owls would see in the match. Swarthmore strung together eight straight points to vault over the hosts and claim the advantage for themselves. Bryn Mawr tried to respond, but were only able to get single points before the Garnet would score again. A kill by Noemi Moreno was the final point the Owls would get in the set, making it 20-13 before the visitors closed the frame with five straight points.

Bryn Mawr responded in a big way in the second frame. After falling behind early, the Owls used several Garnet errors along with a service ace by Lauren Shue to take a 6-4 lead. Swarthmore ran back ahead in the middle of the match, taking a lead as late as 14-9. However, Bryn Mawr put together a huge rally to leap out in front. A service error made it 14-10, and then the Owls got back-to-back blocks from Avary Taylor and Ofili. Now trailing by just two, Ofili and Taylor tied the match up themselves thanks to back-to-back kills. Bryn Mawr finished out the run by taking the lead on another Swarthmore attack error, sending the bench into a frenzy. The visitors momentarily retied the game by winning the next point, but the Owls had all the momentum. The hosts won the next five points, including another Ofili kill and a service ace from Megan Kilmer. At this point, Swarthmore was forced to burn a timeout in an effort to slow down the Owls' roll.

Unfortunately for Bryn Mawr, that stoppage worked perfectly for the Garnet. Swarthmore won the next six points to get back out in front in the match. Ofili helped the Owls tie things back up at 21-all, and later another kill from her and a bad set by the Garnet put Bryn Mawr two points away from taking the set and tying the match at 1-1. It simply would not happen though; Swarthmore won the final three points, closing out the frame on a kill by Wallace and taking an authoritative 2-0 lead in the contest. With the wind now out of their sails, Bryn Mawr was unable to pressure the Garnet much in the third frame. Swarthmore cruised to a 25-15 victory in the frame to take the match in 3-0 fashion.

The Owls now get a one-day break before heading into their final match of the season. Bryn Mawr will host Goucher on Thursday at 7 PM in a match that will also feature two separate causes. The contest will be the final match for three seniors on the volleyball squad, and will represent a celebration of their incredible Bryn Mawr careers. The Owls Fight for a Cure will also take place on Thursday night, as the Bryn Mawr College Athletic Department continues their effort to help battle breast cancer. Be sure to come out and help in the fight, and also say thanks to the Owls seniors when things tip of in the Class of 1958 Gymnasium.