BRIDGEWATER, Va. -- The Marymount University women's volleyball team split a pair of matches to close out the Route 42 Classic on Saturday afternoon, as the Saints picked up a decisive 3-0 win over Salem College. 

Match 1

Marymount rolled to a straight-sets victory to earn their second win of the season to start Saturday's proceedings. The Saints pummeled Salem from the service line to the tune of 16 service aces, which afforded MU plenty of breathing room throughout the match. 

After MU rolled past Salem in the first two sets, the Saints saved their best for last with a match-high 12 kills in the final frame. After some early back-and-forth, the turning point came via a 3-0 run, spurred on by a pair of aces from Sydney Sands, which put MU in the lead at 18-16 and forced Salem to burn a timeout. Marymount never relinquished its lead from there as Mya Bowers brought the set and match to a close at 25-21 with a kill. 

Sands paced MU's barrage at the service line with a career-high nine aces, to go along with nine assists. Freshman Natalie Bialecki continued the impressive start to her career with an 18-assist, 11-dig, double-double. Bialecki's classmate, Maya Harris, led the Saints with eight kills and a stellar .500 attack percentage. Jada Griffith added seven kills and a team-best 17 digs. 

Match 2

After they opened the day with a victory the Saints were upended by host Bridgewater College (3-0) to close out the Route 42 Classic. The Eagles' defensive presence at the net made the difference, as they posted 12 blocks. While Marymount (2-2) edged Bridgewater in digs, 51-47, MU couldn't find a consistent attack to keep pace with the Eagles.

When Marymount's offense found success, it came via Kaitlyn Doyle, Sophie Meredith, and Katee Stromberg, who all tallied five kills. Sydney Sands orchestrated the offense with 15 assists and was one dig shy of a double-double with nine. On the defensive side of the ball, Natalie Garbalosa posted a team-high 11 digs.

MU pushed the Eagles in the second set as the Saints looked to knot the match at 1-1. The Saints took a slim lead at 10-8 early on the heels of a 4-0 run that featured kills from Doyle and Maya Harris. The teams traded points from there, but the Eagles' consistent attack made the difference as they took the set 25-20. The two-sets-to-none deficit proved too much for MU to overcome, as Bridgewater claimed the final set.

Marymount returns to the court on Monday, September, 6, when the Saints host the Catholic University of America inside of Converse Family Fieldhouse at 3:00 p.m.