MEADVILLE, Pa.—The Allegheny College volleyball split a pair of matches in a tri-match Saturday (Sept. 22) at home.
In their opener of the day, the Gators fell to Kenyon College in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) play before bouncing back with a win over Chatham in their second game.
Kenyon 3, Allegheny 0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-18)
In their NCAC season opener, the Gators fell in straight sets.
The Gators jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the opening set. The Ladies quickly tied the game up at five as both teams started to trade points to stay within reach of each other. Tied at 14, Kenyon went on a 3-0 run to gain an advantage. The Gators cut the lead down to two, but the Ladies finished the set on a 6-1 run to take it 25-18.
The team were even until the middle part of the second set, as a 4-0 run gave Kenyon a 15-10 lead. The Ladies pushed that lead to 23-13, but the Gators fought back. The Gators put together a 6-1 run to pull within 23-19, but the Ladies were able to close out the set 25-20.
The third set was also close in the early parts, but once again, a 3-0 run gave Kenyon a 17-14 lead. After a timeout, the Gators rattled off three straight points to tie it up once again. However, the Ladies closed the match on an 8-1 run to secure the conference win.
Grace Lengauer led the Gators with six kills.
Alysha Crowther and Rebecca MacQurrie had four kills each.
Olivia D'Andrea led the Gators with 10 assists.
Rachel Slotterback had 22 digs to go with a pair of aces. Lengauer added nine digs.
Mackenzie Bruzzio led Kenyon with 10 kills while Kate Howard had 15 digs.
Allegheny 3, Chatham 1 (25-20, 25-20, 23-25, 25-16)
The Gators bounced back with a four-set win in their second match of the day.
The Cougars owned a 18-15 lead before the Gators stormed back. Allegheny quickly moved ahead off the heels of a 5-0 run. After a Cougar timeout, the Gators closed the set on a 5-2 run to take it 25-20.
Tied at seven early in the second set, the Gators gained control with a 4-0 run. After exchanging serves, a 5-0 Allegheny run pushed that lead to 17-9. The Cougars fought back late but the Gators held for a 25-20 win.
The Cougars slowly gained advantage in the third set, leading to a 5-0 run to take a 19-13 lead. The Gators fought back with a 9-4 run to pull within one, 23-22, but the Cougars stayed alive in the match with a 25-23 set three run.
The Gators took control early in the fourth set, jumping out to a 6-2 lead. The Cougars pulled within a point at 11-10, but the Gators put together another big 6-0 run to take an 17-10 lead. The Gators kept the Cougars at bay the rest of the set as they clinched the match with a 25-16 win.
Lengauer and Crowther led the Gators with 16 kills apiece. Lengauer also had five aces.
Tamara Babic was also in double figures with 10 kills. D'Andrea had 32 assists while Raelynn Dorscheud had 16.
For the second time on the day, Slotterback led the Gators with 25 digs.
Taylor Besch had a career-high 23 digs. Lengauer and Babic had 11 digs apiece.
The Gators are back on the road Wednesday (Sept. 26) at Fredonia State University.
