Wilkes Women's Volleyball Splits Tri-Match with DelVal and Penn State Altoona
WILKES-BARRE - Wilkes Women's Volleyball split their first non-conference tri-match of the season as they defeated Delaware Valley 3-0 (25-20, 25-14, 25-20) and were bested by Penn State Altoona 3-2 (25-22, 18-25, 25-22, 20-25, 9-15) at the Marts Center on Saturday.
When the dust settled, the Colonels ended the day with a 3-1 record, Delaware Valley ended with a 2-3 record and Penn State Altoona ended the day at 3-4.
Wilkes started the tri-match taking on Delaware Valley, and started the match hot with an eight point run to take the early 8-0 lead. Alexis Reedy (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra Area) contributed four kills in the run. The Aggies finally got on the scoreboard with a three point run to cut into the lead, but Wilkes responded with a three point run of their own to keep the gap at eight. Delaware Valley closed the gap with a 7-5 run to make the score 16-10 before the Colonels once again opened the gap with a five point run to make it 21-10. A five point run highlighted a 10-2 run for the Aggies, but kills by Hope Ousey (Exton, PA/Henderson) and Nicole Fitzpatrick (New Hampton, NY/Minisink Valley) put the set away for the Colonels 25-20.
The early part of the set saw the Aggies take a 9-8 lead as the teams traded small runs, but Wilkes took control from there, dominating the rest of the set on a 17-5 run. Reedy and Ousey led the Colonels with four kills each in the set.
Wilkes took the lead 7-5 to start the final set, then went on a four point run led by two kills from Reedy to take an 11-5 lead. A 6-2 run from Delaware Valley put them back in the fight to make the score 13-11, but another four point run gave the Colonels their cushion back with a 17-11 lead. The teams then traded points back and forth, but despite out-scoring the Colonels 9-8 the Aggies fell in the final set 25-20. Allie Murie (Mays Landing, NJ/Oakcrest) led the Colonels with four kills over that final stretch.
Reedy led Wilkes in kills and aces this game with 15 and two respectively, Alexa Cassel (Mount Joy, PA/Lower Dauphin) led the team in assists with 20, and Yordy led the team with an impressive 18 digs.
Emma Helverson led the Aggies with seven kills, Monique Smith led in assists with 13, while Grace Wilson led Delaware Valley defensively with 13 digs.
In the second match of the day, Penn State Altoona defeated Delaware Valley in straight sets 25-23, 25-16, 25-23, before taking on the Colonels.
Wilkes opened the final match of the day with an 8-2 run over the Lions, led by two Ousey blocks and a kill. Then, the Lions closed that gap with a 13-7 run to tie the game at 15. A four point run led by two Fitzpatrick kills gave the Colonels a 19-15 lead. A 5-3 run brought the deficit to two at 22-20, before two service errors and a kill by Ousey gave the Colonels the first set.
The second set saw Altoona take a 9-5 lead, and continued the momentum through the set to a 22-18 scoreline. A three point run iced the set, and the Lions never lost the lead as they won 25-18.
The third set was a back and forth affair, the score remained close late into the set with the Lions holding a small 17-14 lead. A monstrous 10-3 run allowed the Colonels to slingshot into the lead 24-20, and a Fitzpatrick kill put the set away 25-22 for Wilkes.
Set four was once again a back and forth affair, as both teams traded runs back and forth and remained even late in the set at 20-20. However the Lions put together a five point run to clean up the set and send the game to the decisive fifth set, 25-20.
The Lions continued the momentum into the fifth set and outscored the Colonels 15-6 after giving Wilkes a 3-0 start to the set, claiming the game and handing Wilkes their first loss of the year.
Fitzpatrick shined on both sides of the ball, as she led the Colonels in kills with 15 and added 14 digs to her offensive effort. Cassel once again led the Colonels in assists with 38, while Yordy led the team in digs again with 18.
Lia Simanski led the Lions with 20 kills, Gabriella Serra led in assists with 32, and Anna Bartus led in digs with 16.
The Colonels will be in action again on Tuesday, September 12th as they travel to William Paterson University for their first road contest of the season at 7 p.m.
