Wilkes Women's Volleyball Suffers 3-1 Defeat at Marywood
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Wilkes University women's volleyball team traveled up I-81 to face Marywood University on Thursday evening, falling to the Pacers 3-1 at Insalaco Arena.
Wilkes falls to 7-3 with the defeat, while Marywood improves to 9-1 on the season.
After falling in the first set 25-15, Wilkes responded strong with an early 10-6 lead in the second set. A four-point Pacer run then tied the set at 10, with the teams trading blows back and forth through the middle portion of the frame. With the score 18-17 in favor of Wilkes, a five-point rally with kills from
Kendra Kalp (Somerset, PA/Rockwood),
Mia Leon (Ponce, PR/Caribbean), and
Emilee Atherholt (Coudersport, PA/Coudersport) pushed the team to a 23-17 lead they would not relinquish. A kill from Kalp and a ball handling error on Marywood sealed the second set 25-20 to tie the game at one.
The hosts dominated the early part of the third set, going up 18-6 and subsequently holding off a late Colonel surge to win 25-18. With the score tied at 13 in the fourth set, the Pacers pulled away with a five-point rally to pull ahead 18-13. The Colonels didn't go quietly, however, going on a 10-6 run to put the set on the verge of extra points 24-23. A final Pacer kill proved to be the team's undoing, falling 25-23 after a valiant fourth set.
Leon led the Colonel offense with 13 kills, a game-high, followed by Kalp with 12. Atherholt registered a career-high six blocks, leading all players.
Maddy Durfee (Attica, NY/Attica) led the team with 18 assists, while
Annalyse Santowasso (Middlesex, NJ/Rutgers Prep) led the defensive efforts with 16 digs, followed by Kalp with 14.
Taylor Hallam led the Pacers with 11 kills, while Ayla Bransford distributed 24 assists. Catie Woolf led all players with 20 digs.
The Colonels continue their seven-game road trip on Saturday as they travel to John Jay College for a tri-match with the Bloodhounds and Cairn University beginning at 11:00 a.m.
