MEADVILLE, Pa. – The Allegheny College volleyball team dropped to 1-3 in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) play with a three-set loss to Ohio Wesleyan this afternoon from the David V. Wise Center.
Allegheny (11-7, 1-3 NCAC) played Ohio Wesleyan (19-1, 3-0 NCAC) even for the majority of the first set and hit at a .250 clip in the middle frame, but was unable to beat the Battling Bishops to 25 in any stanza. OWU, who received votes in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll, received a match-high 17 kills and 11 digs from outside hitter Iris Anderson.
Senior outside hitter
Julia Weeks tallied a team-high seven kills on the afternoon, while classmate
Taylor Samuel added five. Middle hitters
Leah Franzluebbers and
Bree Blair were efficient with their swings, needing just 13 to pick up six kills between them.
Sophomore libero
Terra Schall collected a match-high 16 digs for the Gators. Samuel chipped in defensively with 13, while sophomore
Kylee Karczewski was one dig shy of giving Allegheny three players in double-digits.
The opening frame was a back-and-forth affair with the lead changing hands seven different times before the Gators called timeout at 20-19. The Battling Bishops didn't seem fazed by the break, picking up two more points to stretch their lead to 22-19.
Sophomore right side
Morgan Bush and Franzluebbers combined for a block to stop the bleeding, but OWU responded with a two-point rally to force set point and another timeout from Allegheny. The hosts kept their hopes alive with a point out of the break, but a kill by Shannon Schlater gave the frame to the Battling Bishops.
OWU could do little wrong offensively in the middle stanza, hitting .342 as a team en route to a 25-17 victory. Weeks connected on four of six swings with just a single mishit in the frame, while Samuel added three kills on nine attempts.
The Battling Bishops completed the sweep and extended their winning streak to 19 with a 25-13 win in the third set. Blair connected on both of her swings in the frame, picking up the fifth and sixth kills on her young career.
Sophomore setter
Justine Kelly dished out 15 assists in the defeat. Freshman
Bri Ashley saw her first action since Sept. 11 against Penn College, tallying four assists and two digs in the final two sets.
The Gators recognized Samuel, Weeks, middle hitter
Sarah Swartz, and manager Paul Willison prior to the match as part of Senior Day festivities.
Allegheny will compete in a quad match hosted by Saint Joseph's College in Long Island next weekend. The Gators battle the host Golden Eagles on Friday, Oct. 9 at 8:00 p.m. before closing the two-day trip against Misericordia at 10:00 a.m. and New Jersey City at noon.
