The Oglethorpe volleyball team played its home and SAA opener at Dorough Field House this evening, but it did not go well against defending SAA champion and in-state opponent Berry, as the Stormy Petrels lost in straight sets, 3-0 (25-19, 25-9, 25-14).

The Petrels couldn't get much going against the Vikings. Senior outside hitter Anna Marie DiSalvo led the team with seven kills, freshman setter Katie Stewart added 15 assists, and freshman defensive specialist Gianna Zitello paced the team with 13 digs.

The match began relatively well for the Petrels, as they were very competitive in the first set. They held a 7-6 lead and, though Berry immediately took the lead back and never relinquished it, the Petrels stayed in the set. Berry took an 11-8 lead, but Oglethorpe won three points in a row to tie it back up. Berry won four in a row to re-take the lead, 15-11, but the Petrels again had an answer, fighting back to within a point, 15-14. From there, Berry slowly began to pull away, winning seven of the next nine points to take a 22-16 lead. The Petrels won three of the next five, including fighting off a set point, to make the score 24-19. However, Berry closed it out from there to take a 1-0 lead.

The second set did not at all go well for Oglethorpe. They were in it for awhile, as the score was tied 3-3 early and then, after a Berry mini-run, the Petrels fought back to cut the Viking lead to 8-6. However, Berry ran off eight straight to make it 16-6 and, after back-to-back Oglethorpe points, won nine of the set's final 10 points.

In the third, the Petrels fought off the second set disappointment and took an early 5-1 advantage. However, Berry settled in and went on a 19-6 run to take control of the set, 20-11. Oglethorpe fought back with three straight points to cut the Viking lead to six, 20-14. Unfortunately, they were the last three points the Petrels would win. Berry took the final five for the 25-14 victory and the 3-0 sweep.

The loss drops the Petrels to 8-4 on the season, 0-1 in SAA play. They'll start getting into the meat of their conference schedule with two tri-matches this weekend. On Saturday, they'll face Millsaps in an SAA match at noon and Covenant in a non-conference tilt at 4 p.m. Then on Sunday, it'll be Birmingham-Southern visiting Dorough Field House at 11 a.m. before Wesleyan (Ga.), who the Petrels defeated, 3-0, at the Huntingdon College Jubilee over Labor Day weekend, takes on the Petrels at 3 p.m.