WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University women's volleyball team dropped its non-conference match Tuesday night at the Marts Center in straight sets after coming up just shy in the first two sets to Penn State Berks. The Nittany Lions took the sets 26-24, 26-24, 25-16 to earn the road victory.

Wilkes dropped to 7-19 overall with the loss while Penn State Berks improved its record to 17-8 overall.

The Colonels erased a three-point deficit in the first set with a 10-1 run to take a 24-18 lead and earn set points. During the run Allison Murie (Mays Landing, NJ/Oakcrest), Hope Ousey (Exton, PA/Henderson), and Alex Reedy had kills while Emily Gentzel (Yaphank, NY/Bellport) recorded two aces. The Nittany Lions were able to fight all the way back with the final eight points to steal the opening set 26-24.

Penn State Berks went ahead 18-12 in the second set but Wilkes went on a 9-2 run to gain the 21-20 advantage following a kill by reigning Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom Offensive Player of the Week Nicole Fitzpatrick (New Hampton, NY/Minisink Valley). The Nittany Lions regained momentum and scored six of the final nine points to win 26-24 and go ahead 2-0 in the match.

The Nittany Lions started strong in the third set, gaining a 10-4 lead. The Colonels would close to within two points at 14-12 but Penn State Berks put the finishing touches on the sweep with an 11-4 run to win 25-16.

Fitzpatrick led Wilkes with 11 kills. Sierra Hines (Wilkes-Barre, PA/Holy Redeemer) added six kills and sported a .667 hitting percentage. Murie finished with five kills and three blocks. Alexa Cassel (Mount Joy, PA/Lower Dauphin) dished out 29 assists. Ali Yordy (Fairfield, PA/Fairfield Area) led the defense with 12 digs while Gentzel added nine.

Jordan Thompson led Penn State Berks with eight kills while Riley Kovach had 11 digs. Julia Rathsam directed the offense with 30 assists.

Penn State Berks hit .213 as a team compared to .173 for Wilkes and led 35-30 in kills. The Nittany Lions served 14 aces compared to four for Wilkes. The Colonel had the edge in digs 33-30 and blocks 4-2.

The Colonels close out regular season play in the MAC Freedom at the Marts Center on Thursday night hosting Delaware Valley University at 7:00 p.m.