ERIE, Pa. (Oct. 15) – Trailing by as many as five points in the fifth set and facing match point multiple times, the Vulcans recorded a 3-2 victory (24-26, 25-21, 25-19, 20-25, 16-14) at Mercyhurst in PSAC Crossover play.

With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania volleyball team improves to 13-5 behind a 5-2 league mark. Meanwhile, Mercyhurst falls to 11-7 overall and 3-4 in conference action.

Senior Danielle Hayes (Erie, Pa./McDowell) collected 17 kills and added seven digs, while sophomore Seairra Barrett (Central Twp., Pa./Central Valley) tallied 14 kills. Junior Ashley Leto (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) posted nine kills and sophomore Lois van Schaik (Naarden, Netherlands/St. Vituscollege) recorded eight kills. Senior Megan Litoborski guided the offense with 50 assists against the Lakers.

Sophomore Bayleana Sowers (Mt. Wolf, Pa./Northeastern) paced the team with 20 digs and Leto added 16 digs. Litoborksi recorded eight digs and sophomore Marisa Fanelli (Ashburn, Va./Broad Run) collected seven digs. Leto tallied three service aces and van Schaik posted a team-high nine blocks. Sophomore Tina Bellhy (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry) added six blocks and Barrett collected five blocks.

In the first set, Mercyhurst took an early 5-3 lead before Cal U tied the score after posting back-to-back points. The Lakers won five of the next six points to extend their lead to 10-6. The teams traded points before Cal U won consecutive points to cut the deficit to 13-11. Mercyhurst won back-to-back points before Cal U took four of the next five points to trim the lead to 16-15. The Lakers went on a 6-2 run to extend their lead to 22-17. Cal U won four of the next five to cut the lead to 23-21. Following a timeout, Mercyhurt won a point before the Cal U tied the score at 24-24 after winning three-straight points. Mercyhurst took the final two points to win the set 26-24.

Behind a .364 hitting percentage in the second set, the Vulcans jumped out to an early 10-5 lead. The Lakers won consecutive points before the Vulcans won five of the next six to extend the lead to 15-8. Mercyhurst took six of the next nine to trim the lead to 18-14. A kill by Leto gave the Vulcans a 19-14 lead before the Lakers won five of the next seven points to trim the lead to 21-19. The Vulcans went on a 4-1 run to hold a 24-20 lead before the Lakers scored to get within three points. A kill by Barrett gave the Vulcans a 25-21 win.

In the third set, Cal U took an early 5-3 lead before Mercyhurst won back-to-back points to even the score at 5-5. The Vulcans took three of the next five points to gain an 8-7 lead. Mercyhurst scored three unanswered to take a 10-8 lead before Cal U went on a 7-2 run to take a 15-12 lead. The Vulcans extended their lead to 18-14 after winning three of the next five points. Meryhurst won four of the next seven points to trim the lead to 21-18. Cal U took four of the final six points to earn a 25-19 victory. 

The Lakers raced to an 8-5 lead in the fourth set before forcing the Vulcans to take a timeout. An attack error cut the deficit to 8-6 before Mercyhurst took four of the next six points to extend its lead to 12-8. A kill by Barrett cut the lead to 12-9 before the Lakers won six of nine to hold an 18-12 advantage. Following a timeout, Cal U scored four-unanswered points to pull within 18-16 before Mercyhurst went on a 4-1 run to extend its lead to 22-17. An attack error cut the lead to 22-18 before the Lakers scored three of the final five points to take the set at 25-20.

In the decisive fifth set, the two teams were tied 4-4 when Mercyhurst went on a 6-1 run to gain a 10-5 advantage. Cal U rallied by taking five of the next seven points cut the lead to 12-10. Mercyhurst took a 13-10 lead before a kill from van Schaik lead to a 6-1 run that gave Cal U a 16-14 victory.

The Vulcans return to action on Friday, Oct. 21, when they host Clairon at 7 p.m.