GROVE CITY, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College women's volleyball team (3-9) fell in two matches at the Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament, hosted by Grove City. The Presidents dropped a four setter in game one to the Penn State Behrend Lions (8-2) by a scoreline of 25-9, 21-25, 15-25, 15-25. In game two, the Red & Black fell in three sets to the Mount Union Purple Raiders (8-2) by a 20-25, 22-25, 16-25 scoreline.
PSU-Behrend 3, W&J 1
Sophomore
Cali Dagen (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) led the Presidents offensively with a season high 18 kills. Classmate
Isabella Bottiglieri (Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin) recorded 26 assists to lead the team in that category. Defensively, sophomore
Sydney Allen (Washington, Pa./Trinity) led the team with 19 digs and senior
Abby Oldham (Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell) led with four blocks.
The Presidents opened the contest on an 11-4 run. Dagen had four kills during the opening stretch. The Red & Black kept the up the strong start, winning 12 of the last 17 points, to take the opening set 25-9. Dagen had three additional kills and sophomore
Stella Stossel (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) also picked up two. Senior captain
Brielle Moorhouse (East Liberty, Ohio/Benjamin Logan) closed out the set with back-to-back aces.
The two teams traded points to open the second set. W&J found a run to take a 17-11 advantage halfway through. Senior
Rian Benz (Strongsville, Ohio/Holy Name), junior
Emma Padovano (Richwood, Ohio/North Union), and sophomore
Lola Jacobs (Bridgeville, Pa./South Fayette) each had a kill during the stretch. The Lions responded by winning 14 of the last 18 points to take the second set 25-21, evening the match at one.
Both teams traded mini runs to open the third, keeping the match tied a six. Dagen and Padovano both recorded kills. Benz also registered an ace to open the third. Penn State Behrend went on an 8-1 run to break the third open. A Dagen ace cut the gap down to three, but ultimately the Lions replyed and took the third set 25-15.
The Red & Black responded in the fourth and got out to an early 5-2 lead following kills by Dagen and freshman
Eva McKnight (East Liverpool, Ohio/Beaver Local). The Lions replied with an 8-0 run of their own. The Presidents did not go down without a fight and tied the fourth at 13. Dagen and freshman
Kenna Adams (Finleyville, Pa./Ringgold) each had two kills during the stretch and classmate
Aubrey Fetchik (Chardon, Ohio/Chardon) recorded one. Ultimately, the Lions found an extra gear and closed the match on an 12-2 run and took the final set 25-15 to win the contest.
Mount Union 3, W&J 0
Benz and Dagen led the Presidents offensively in the second game of the day with 11 kills apiece. Bottiglieri had 23 assists and Moorhouse recorded 11. Defensively, Allen led with 16 digs and Jacobs recorded three blocks.
Both teams traded runs to begin the contest as each squad couldn't hold more than a three point lead until 15-15. The Presidents broke the set open the set to take a 19-15 lead with serves from Dagen. Benz and McKnight both recorded a kill as well. The Purple Raiders responded by winning 10 out of the last 11 points to take the first set 25-20.
W&J started out set two by opening a small 4-1 advantage following serves by Benz. All four Presidents' points came from a kill during the stretch. Both teams traded points, but the Purple Raiders responded by knotting the set at 10. The Red & Black opened their lead back up to 17-13 following aces by Jacobs, Dagen, and senior
Gabby Leadbitter (Finleyville, Pa./Wheeling Central Catholic). Mount Union fought back and regained the lead at 20-19. Both teams traded points and the Purple Raiders claimed the second set 25-22.
Mount Union used their momentum from the second and started the third on a 6-2 run. W&J tried to slow the momentum but the Purple Raiders were able to extend their advantage to 11-5. The Presidents found a spark though and replied with a 7-0 run to take a 12-11 lead. Bottiglieri served during the stretch and recorded an ace. McKnight and Benz each recorded two kills during the run as well. Ultimately, Mount Union found their stride again and went on simultaneous 6-0 and 5-0 runs to break the set open and claim the final frame 25-16 and the overall match.
The Presidents return to the court when they host the Franciscan Barons on Wednesday (Sept. 23) to begin Presidents' Athletic Conference play. The match is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. inside the Salvitti Family Gymnasium.
