Wilkes Women's Volleyball Falls in Five Sets to Arcadia
GLENSIDE, PA – Wilkes University women's volleyball is unable to pass Arcadia University in Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom play, as they fall in five sets (34-32, 12-25, 15-25, 26-24, 8-15).
Wilkes falls to 3-11, 0-4 in conference play, while Arcadia improve to 12-3 and is still in the top of the MAC Freedom with a 4-0 record.
The first set saw the Colonels take it to the Knights, leading Arcadia 9-4 behind kills from Nicole Fitzpatrick (New Hampton, NY/Minisink Valley) and Sierra Hines (Wilkes-Barre, PA/Holy Redeemer), with a block from Hines and Alexis Reedy (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra Area). Arcadia slowly came back, pushing through the Colonel lead until they tied the game 18-18, forcing Wilkes to call a timeout. Capitalizing on mistakes from the Knights, along with Fitzpatrick and Hope Ousey (Exton, PA/Henderson) kills, the Colonels found themselves down 23-24. Wilkes were able to get the match point and force the set to continue, where both teams kept trading one-point leads through the set. Ousey, Hines, Fitzpatrick, and Allison Murie (Mays Landing, NJ/Oakcrest) all contributed in earning kills during that end stretch for the Colonels, eventually edging out the Knights 34-32 to take the first set.
The second set saw the Knights begin to get momentum and jump out to a 9-5 lead, forcing Wilkes to call a timeout. Even with kills from Fitzpatrick and Reedy, while Ali Yordy (Fairfield, PA/Fairfield Area) had a service ace were not enough to keep Arcadia at bay, as they would take the second set 25-12 and tie the series at one.
The third set saw both teams keep up with one another, tying at 6-6, with kills from Murie, Reedy, and Fitzpatrick. Arcadia would then score 10 of the next 13 points, taking a 16-9 lead over Wilkes. Alexa Cassel (Mount Joy, PA/Lower Dauphin) service ace and Hines kill were not enough to keep the Knights from continuing to extend their lead, taking the third set 25-15.
The fourth set saw both teams keep the competitive matchup going, as they would trade points and runs, tying each other 10 times during this set. The Colonels would have a 12-9 lead, with kills from Hines and Fitzpatrick along with Emily Gentzel (Yaphank, NY/Bellport) service ace. The Knights would continue to fight back, trading leads with the Colonels. Cassel would get her own kill during that run, with some errors to help Wilkes stay in the set. Wilkes would get three straight points from Ousey and Hines, holding a 22-20 lead and forcing Arcadia to take a timeout. Arcadia would stay in the set, tying the game 23-23 and making Wilkes call a timeout of their own. Both teams would go back and forth, with Wilkes taking a 25-24 lead. Kelsey Carroll (Jim Thorpe, PA/Jim Thorpe) would take a set and spike the ball to the line, where it was initially called out of bounds. After some debate by the officials, they overturned the call and gave Carroll the kill, which gave Wilkes the fourth set 26-24 and tied the series 2-2 into the final set.
Arcadia would jump to a quick lead in the fifth set, going up 10-3 before the Colonels would be forced to call a timeout. Ousey, Fitzpatrick, and Hines would get kills after the timeout, but would not be able to stop the Knights from continuing their run as Arcadia would take the fifth set and the series 15-8.
Fitzpatrick would lead the Colonels with a career-high 22 kills on the night, with Ousey and Hines following her with nine and seven respectively. Cassel would get 45 assists on the night, while also recording two service aces along with Lylah Oswald (Wyalusing, PA/Wyalusing). Hines, Reedy, Ousey, and Murie would all tie for first with two blocks in the series for the Colonels.
Wilkes will stay on the road as they head to Cedar Crest College on Thursday for a 7:00 p.m. non-conference game.
