The Muhlenberg volleyball team opened the Buttermaker Tournament with dominant sweeps of two opponents, one that traveled a mile and one that traveled more than 300 miles.

The Mules (5-4) were rarely challenged in defeating Cedar Crest, 25-10, 25-13, 25-13, and St. Lawrence, 25-17, 25-17, 25-16.

An efficient offense was the story of the day for the Mules, who hit .351 against Cedar Crest and .378 against St. Lawrence. It was their first time hitting over .350 in back-to-back matches since 2014.

Muhlenberg led only 8-7 against the crosstown Falcons before closing out the first set on a 17-3 run that included one stretch in which sophomore Maddy Budris served aces on three of four points. 

Freshman Andrea Romero-Agosto served eight straight points in the second set, helping stake the Mules to a 15-3 lead, while sophomore Abigail Oswari (six points) and junior Jenny Ryan (seven) each enjoyed long service runs in the third set.

Muhlenberg served 15 aces in all against Cedar Crest, and when the Mules did have to run their offense, sophomore Olivia Bruno (7 kills in 11 attempts), senior Christina Marcin (6 kills in 8 attempts), and Romero-Agosto and sophomore Natalia Agnolet (6 kills in 9 attempts each) kept the points coming. 

Ryan (13 assists), sophomore Ansley Asche (7), freshman Bailey Crampton (6), and Budris (5) all saw time at setter.

The second set against St. Lawrence was tied 16-16 before the Mules scored nine of the last 10 points, mostly with Romero-Agosto serving. Muhlenberg never trailed in the third set, with two kills by Bruno finishing off the match.

Marcin recorded a team-leading 15 kills, while Agnolet (pictured above) was efficient again, putting down 7 kills in only 10 attempts. Bruno finished with 9 kills, and Oswari contributed 7 kills and 5 aces.

Junior Chloe Gaglione led the defense with 11 digs.