WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University women's volleyball team dropped a Landmark Conference matchup to the University of Scranton Friday night, falling three sets to one (11-25, 25-21, 15-25, 14-25) at the Marts Center.
 
The loss set Wilkes' season record to 7-13 and their conference record to 0-4. With the win, Scranton improved to 11-7 on the season while remaining a perfect 6-0 in Landmark play.
 
The Colonels found life in the first set when Nicole Fitzpatrick (New Hampton, NY/Minisink Valley) strung together a kill and service ace, however a nine-point rally for the Royals in the first set proved to be insurmountable for Wilkes. Scranton would remain in control for the remainder of the set.
 
In the second set, two kills by Jenna Baron (Nanticoke, PA/Greater Nanticoke Area) followed by an Alexis Reedy (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra Area) kill swung the momentum the Colonels' way and gave them an 11-7 lead. The teams would trade points throughout the set, but Wilkes ultimately captured the set point on a kill by Sierra Hines (Wilkes-Barre, PA/Holy Redeemer).
 
The Royals jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the third set before Reedy stopped the run with another kill. Scranton maintained their offensive pressure and put together another seven-point rally that put the third set out of the Colonels' reach.
 
With their backs against the wall, Wilkes opened the fourth set with two points off of service and attack errors. The majority of the set was back-and-forth with neither team finding a rhythm on offense. In the end, the Royals would string together five consecutive points to claim both the set and match.
 
Reedy and Hope Ousey (Exton, PA/Henderson) led the Colonels with 33 and 19 attacks respectively. Ousey also collected eight kills for Wilkes, while she and Fitzpatrick both made seven digs on the night.
 
Scranton's offense relied heavily on Deanna Whepley, who put together 22 attacks, 10 points and nine kills for the Royals. Gianna Detorie made five service aces as Cammi Quirk led the team with 24 assists over four sets.

The Colonels are right back in action at the Marts Center on Saturday morning when they welcome Drew University and John Jay College to town for a tri-match. The first match against Drew is scheduled for 11:00 a.m.