WILKES-BARRE – The Colonels hosted two Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth foes for Senior Day, the Alvernia Golden Wolves and the Hood Blazers with the opportunity to reach .500 for the season on the line.
 
The Colonels (16-16) took down the Golden Wolves (3-16) in straight sets 25-20, 30-28, 25-23 to claim the morning match before emerging victorious 3-1 against the Blazers (3-28) 25-22, 22-25, 25-16, 25-19 in the afternoon.
 
Errors early by the Colonels let the Golden Wolves take an early 5-4 lead in the first set.  A pair of kills by senior opposite hitter Jamey Mikovich (Nesquehoning, PA/Panther Valley) helped the Colonels take a 10-7 lead in the match.  Alvernia would answer with a 5-2 run before the Colonels reclaimed their lead with a 8-2 run of their own to take a 21-15 lead the Golden Wolves would have no answer for on the way to a 25-20 set win.
 
The teams traded runs early in the second set.  The Colonels started out with an 8-3 run, before the Golden Wolves answered with an 11-2 run to force a Colonels timeout.  The Golden Wolves built their lead to as much as 21-13 before serves by senior libero Julie Murphy (Mountaintop, PA/Crestwood) and Mikovich sparked a 12-3 run that gave them a 25-24 lead to force extra points.  Alvernia came within a point of victory twice in the extra points, but a 4-1 run in the end sealed the marathon set for the Colonels.
 
The two mostly traded points early in the third set, but the Golden Wolves went on a 7-1 run to claim a 10-7 lead in the match.  The Colonels controlled most of the set, including a 7-1 run of their own to put them in match point, but the Golden Wolves refused to roll over.  A 6-0 run put Alvernia within striking distance of forcing extra points, but the Colonels claimed the lone point they needed at the right time to take the set and match.
 
Mikovich led the Colonels in kills and blocks with 17 and five apiece, and tied for the team lead with fellow senior outside hitter Alex Ferrier (Auburn, PA/Blue Mountain) with two service aces.  Ferrier also had 11 kills in the morning match.  Senior middle hitter Michele Natale (Kinnelon, NJ/Kinnelon) had four blocks, while Murphy lead the team with 15 digs.  Sophomore setter Karlye Huffman (Sugar Run, PA/Wyalusing) had 29 assists in the first match.
 
In the second match the Colonels slowly build up a 12-7 lead thanks to Huffman's serving and Mikovich's kills before the Blazers went on a 7-2 run to tie the set at 14 all.  The teams traded points until a Ferrier service ace sparked a 5-2 end of set run for the Colonels to take set one.  The two teams were neck and neck for most of the second set, sitting at 17 all until the Blazers took chunks of points thanks to Colonels errors to claim the set 25-22.
 
The teams continued to bounce points back and forth early into the third set until Huffman took over serving and sparked a 15-4 run with back-to-back service aces.  The Blazers fought back with a 4-1 run but it failed to dig them out of their hole and the Colonels emerged victorious 25-16. 
 
The teams continued their tradition of tight set starts into the third, with the Colonels slowly pulling away with 3-0 runs off of Huffman and Mikovich serves to take a 15-10 advantage.  A 5-1 run by the Blazers shortly thereafter cut the Wilkes advantage down to 19-18 before the Colonels finished Senior Day with a 6-1 run to take their third set.
 
Mikovich had 22 kills, 14 digs, and two blocks and aces respectively to finish her regular season career with the Colonels.  Junior defensive specialist Kristie Nadjek and Huffman each had a trio of service aces apiece.  Sophomore middle hitter Amy Hadesty (Tamaqua, PA/Tamaqua Area) led the Colonels with three blocks in the afternoon tilt.  Murphy led the Colonels with 15 digs and Huffman with 37 assists. 
 
The Colonels have concluded regular season play and the two wins have them in position for a potential ECAC berth.