St. Mary's City, Md. – The St. Mary's College of Maryland volleyball team opened up Capital Athletic Conference action Wednesday night, hosting Salisbury University in front of a 'blue' crowd. Unfazed by the #BlueOut campaign and the loud crowd, Salisbury posted a 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-12) victory over the Seahawks.

Senior middle blocker Mandy Goodspeed (Columbia, Md./Atholton) paced St. Mary's in the match with nine kills while junior Mimi Graf (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) dished 10 assists. Junior outside hitter Alli Graf (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) carried the defensive load with a match-best 13 digs.

St. Mary's (7-6, 0-1 CAC) looked poised to claim the win in the first set as the Seahawks staked a 14-8 lead behind a service ace from senior middle hitter Karlee Vaillant (Arnold, Md./Broadneck). Salisbury's offensive leader, junior outside hitter Katie Stouffer (Frederick, Md./Tuscarora), sparked a 7-0 run with back-to-back kills. After regaining the lead, the Sea Gulls finished out the match with the 25-17 win.

After trading leads in the first four points of the second set, Salisbury never trailed again and owned a 15-10 advantage on a Seahawk attack error. The Sea Gulls gained the 25-17 victory behind seven Stouffer kills.

Following a 10-minute intermission, Salisbury picked up where it left off in the second set and led the entire third game from the first point of the set. Ten attacking errors by St. Mary's fueled the Sea Gulls' control of the match's final game.

Stouffer led all attackers with 18 kills while sophomore setter Rachel Pierson (Edgewater, Md./South River) kept the Sea Gull offense rolling with 25 assists. Pierson finished with a double-double as she added 11 digs while Stouffer also contributed six digs and four service aces.

The Seahawks will look to snag their first conference win of the season on Saturday, October 3 when St.  Mary's welcomes Penn State Harrisburg (7-8, 0-1 CAC) to the Michael P. O'Brien Athletics & Recreation Center Arena for a match at 12:00 p.m.

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