CALIFORNIA (Sept. 30) – After dropping the first two sets, the California University of Pennsylvania volleyball team rallied back to earn a 3-2 victory (19-25, 15-25, 25-15, 26-24, 15-11) against Seton Hill at the Convocation Center on Tuesday night in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play.
With the win, the Vulcans improve to 11-5 this season with a 5-2 mark in league action. Meanwhile, the Griffins fall to 14-2 overall and after having lost two of their last three matches following 13-straight victories to open the year. Seton Hill and Cal U are both tied for fourth in the PSAC West standings, sitting only one match back of a three-way tie for first place.
Sophomore
Danielle Hayes (Erie, Pa./McDowell) led the team with 13 kills on an impressive .524 hitting percentage, while senior
Laurel Miller (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) finished with 12 kills on 52 attempts. Junior
Mary Lavery (La Plata, Md./La Plata) added 10 kills and classmate
Miranda Fouzie (Kingston, Ontario/Sydenham) posted nine kills while hitting at a .364 clip. Sophomore
Megan Litoborski (Lemont, Ill./Lemont) guided the offense with 37 assists in the victory and freshman
Taylor Solo (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) finished with 12 assists after playing in last three sets.
Junior
Samantha Rudy paced the defensive effort with 24 digs and senior
Taylor Melidona (Rochester, N.Y./Irondequoit) added 14 digs in the victory. Litoborski tallied her third assist/dig double-double in her last five matches after totaling 16 digs. Fouzie led the team with seven blocks and a trio of other players collected at three blocks on Tuesday.
Seton Hill won the opening four points in the first set before Cal U responded with five-consecutive points. The Griffins countered by winning five of the next six points to take a 10-7 lead, while Cal U later won six of nine points to tie the score at 16-16. Seton Hill closed the match on a 9-3 run, highlighted by six-straight points, to earn the 25-19 victory.
After the teams traded points early in the second set, the Griffins mounted a 12-1 rally to take a sizeable 16-6 margin after claiming eight-consecutive points. Seton Hill later won five of seven points to force set point at 24-13 before Cal U won three-straight points. The Griffins then collected the final point of the set, committing just one error in the 25-15 win.
Cal U started the comeback early in the third set after taking a 6-1 lead before the teams traded the next three points. The Vulcans then won nine of 10 points to increase their lead to 16-4 before the teams swapped the next six points. Cal U won four of five points to take a 22-8 lead before Seton Hill countered with six-consecutive points. The Vulcans earned three of the next four points to claim a 25-15 victory after hitting at an incredible .480 clip in the set.
The teams traded points for the opening half of the fourth set, which featured a combined 10 ties and four lead changes. With the score tied at 11-11, the Vulcans won eight of 10 points to take a 19-13 lead on a kill by Fouzie. Seton Hill responded with a 7-2 run to trim the deficit to 22-20 before Cal U forced set point by claiming back-to-back points. The Griffins rallied with four-straight points to tie the score at 24-24 before the Vulcans seized momentum with back-to-back kills, as Hayes capped the 26-24 win.
Early in the fifth set, Seton Hill won six of eight points to take an 8-5 lead before Cal U countered with a 5-1 run to take a 10-9 lead on a service ace. The Griffins answered with back-to-back points before the Vulcans forced a timeout by Seton Hill after winning three-straight points to take a 13-11 lead. Cal U closed out the match victory with a 15-11 win following back-to-back service aces by Fouzie.
Cal U continues its three-match homestand on Friday, Oct. 3, when it hosts Slippery Rock at 7 p.m.
