WASHINGTON, Pa. -- Sophomore
Jaden Blough (Meyersdale, Pa./Meyersdale) registered a career-high 17 kills and freshman
Faith Fetsko (South Park, Pa./South Park) tallied 22 kills and added 23 digs as the W&J volleyball team picked up a 3-1 victory over the visiting Chatham Cougars Thursday evening at the Salvitti Family Gymnasium. Senior
Claire Sauerland (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg) finished with 11 kills and no hitting errors in the victory.
The W&J win snapped a four-match losing streak in the head-to-head series with the Cougars. The win was the third-straight overall for the Presidents, who improve to 6-3 this season. The loss dropped Chatham to 5-6 overall.
W&J 3, Chatham 1 (25-23, 25-16, 24-26, 25-22)
The first set featured 10 ties and four lead changes. The Presidents opened the match with three straight points only to see the Cougars answer with four straight to take a 4-3 lead. Both teams settled into the set from there, as the teams exchanged points and eventually were evened up at 13 points apiece. That is when W&J took control of the opening set with nine consecutive points. Fetsko and Blough combined to account for six kills during the run. Back-to-back kills by Fetsko gave W&J a 22-13 advantage. The Cougars responded with nine of the next 10 points to close within a single point (23-22). The Presidents, once again turned to Fetsko, as the rookie recorded the final two points for the Presidents in a 25-23 set victory. Fetsko had eight kills in the opening frame.
Just as they did in the first set, the Presidents pulled away midway through the second set. With the score tied at 13-13, W&J once again ripped off nine-straight points to pull in front for good. Blough and Sauerland combined to account for four kills during the extended run for the Red and Black. Sauerland punctuated a 25-16 set two win with a kill to give the Presidents a 2-0 lead entering the third set. The score was tied seven times in the second set as the lead changed twice.
The third set was another thriller in the hotly contested matchup. The lead was exchanged five times as the score was tied on nine occasions. W&J seemed poised to claim its third straight sweep, as the home team used consecutive kills by Fetsko and another by junior
Lizzie Carmichael (Wyoming, Ohio/Wyoming) to take a 20-16 lead over Chatham. A block assist by Sauerland and freshman
Abby Tester (Munhall, Pa./Steel Valley) gave W&J a 24-22 edge and match point. However, the Cougars countered with four consecutive points to stun the Presidents and force a fourth set.
That momentum spilled over into the fourth set, as W&J had trouble regrouping early on. The Cougars raced out to leads of 7-1 and 12-2 as the visitors looked to force a decisive fifth set. However, the Presidents proved resilient and worked themselves back into the set. W&J used four-straight points to trim the deficit to five (14-9) on a kill by Blough. Trailing by a 18-13 score, W&J forced a 6-1 run to pull even at 19 points apiece. Blough and Carmichael combined to account for four of the final five W&J points during the run. Chatham took a 21-20 lead on a kill by Baileigh Horan but the Presidents closed the match with five of the final six points to take the victory. Following a service error by Chatham, Fetsko tallied three-straight kills before seeing Blough finish off the victory with a kill of her own.
W&J put together a fine night offensively, as they racked up 60 kills and hit .224 as a team. Festko finished with a match-best 22 kills, seven of which came in the fourth set. Blough added six successful attacks in the final set.
Sophomore setter
Adrianna Sacramento (Pittsburgh, Pa./Woodland Hills) did a fantastic job at distribution. Sacramento tallied a career-best 50 assists in the victory. Additionally, Sacramento added 17 digs and two service aces.
Defensively, freshman libero
Piper McFarland (West Mifflin, Pa./Cornerstone Preparatory Academy) paced the Presidents with 29 digs. Fetsko added a season-best 23 digs while senior
Sophia Sacriponte (Butler, Pa./Butler) and sophomore
Lanie French (Beaver, Pa./Beaver) added 16 digs and 15 digs, respectively. The Presidents registered 110 digs in the match.
W&J welcomes Saint Vincent College to the Salvitti Family Gym on Saturday, Sept. 24. Start time is slated for 2:30 p.m.
