The Oglethorpe volleyball team completed a fantastic two-day, season-opening stay at the Huntingdon College Jubilee in Montgomery, Ala., Saturday, sweeping both Talladega and hosts Huntingdon, 3-0, on Saturday. The two victories capped off a nine-set sweep over three matches for the Stormy Petrels.

The team capped off its weekend by defeating the host Huntingdon Hawks in a fairly tight match despite the 3-0 final margin. The Petrels won 26-24, 25-19, 25-21 in a match that saw senior outside hitters McKenna Bondarenko and Anna Marie DiSalvo accrue 10 kills apiece while freshman setter Katie Stewart collected 28 assists.

The homestanding Hawks got off to a good start in the opening set, jumping out to a 6-2 lead before expanding that to 11-6. Huntingdon pushed the lead to as much as six, 18-12, before the Petrels started to mount their comeback. Oglethorpe went on a 9-2 run and turned the set on it's head, taking a 24-22 lead. The Hawks were able to fight off two set points to tie it up, 24-24, but the Petrels closed it out, 26-24, with two straight points.

The Petrels took control and kept it for the rest of the match. They jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second set, and though Huntingdon would fight back to take a 7-6 lead, the Petrels would reel off a 9-1 run to take a 15-8 lead. From there, the two teams would basically trade points for the rest of the set. This would suit Oglethorpe just fine, and they cruised to the 25-19 victory and the 2-0 lead.

In the third set, Huntingdon took a 4-2 lead in the early-going, but a 14-3 run put the Petrels up 16-7 and looking to close the match out. The teams traded four-point runs, giving Oglethorpe a 20-11 advantage. Huntingdon fought valiantly, going on a 10-2 run to pull to within a single point, 22-21. However, they would not win another point as the Petrels closed it out, 25-21.

Earlier in the day, the Petrels handled Talladega 25-12, 25-18, 25-14. Freshman Kaitlyn Woodruff led the Petrels with 12 kills for the match while Stewart passed out 28 assists. Senior libero Megan Makuck contributed 13 digs and freshman defensive specialist Gianna Zitello added 12 of her own. 

In the first set, the Petrels asserted control after a 6-6 tie early. They ran off a 15-3 stretch and took a 21-9 advantage, basically putting the set away. A Bondarenko kill off an assist from Stewart sealed the 25-12 first-set victory.

In the second, another big Oglethorpe run put them in excellent position to take complete control of the match. After falling behind 4-3, it was a 16-7 run that gave the Stormy Petrels a 19-10 advantage. A 6-1 Talladega run brought them back to within four, 20-16, but the Petrels closed on a 5-2 run of their own. Woodruff killed an assist from Stewart to close out the set, 25-18.

Talladega's only lead in the third set came at 2-1, as the Petrels started to slowly pull away from there. A 13-3 run all but clinched the match for Oglethorpe, giving them a 21-10 lead. The Petrels matched a four-point Talladega run with a four-point run of their own, closing out the match, 25-14.

The Stormy Petrels will take their 3-0 record back on the road to Sewanee, Tenn., next weekend for the Sewanee Invitational. They'll take on Point and Fisk on Friday and Cumberland (Tenn.) on Saturday before being set up either in the championship match or a consolation match, based on the previous results of the tournament.