FAIRMONT, W.Va. (Sept. 27) – The California University of Pennsylvania volleyball team claimed the opening two sets on Tuesday night before rallying for a 3-2 victory (25-18, 25-16, 24-26, 23-25, 15-7) at Fairmont State in non-conference action.

With the win, the Vulcans improve to 10-3 overall after playing their first road match of the year. Meanwhile, the Fighting Falcons fall to 7-6 this season after entering play on a five-match winning streak.

Senior Danielle Hayes (Erie, Pa./McDowell) reset her career high in kills for the second-straight match, as she led all players with 27 kills on a .254 hitting percentage. Her 27 kills are the most in a match since Laurel Miller also totaled 27 kills against Fairmont State during the 2013 season. Hayes also collected 16 digs and four blocks against the Fighting Falcons on Tuesday night.

Sophomore Seairra Barrett (Center Twp., Pa./Central Valley) added 11 kills while hitting at a .250 clip, while junior Ashley Leto (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) posted nine kills on 44 attacks and sophomore Lois van Schaik (Naarden, Netherlands/St. Vituscollege) finished with eight kills. Senior Megan Litoborski (Lemont, Ill./Lemont) directed the offense with 53 assists for her second match of at least 50 assists this year, and the fourth of her career.

Sophomore Bayleana Sowers (Mt. Wolf, Pa./Northeastern) paced five players with double-digit digs in the victory, recording 24 digs at Fairmont State. Leto set a season high with 22 digs, while Litoborski finished with 20 digs for her fourth assist/dig double-double of the year. Hayes posted 15 digs and junior Emily Berry (Beaver, Pa./Beaver) totaled a season-high 12 digs on Tuesday. The quartet of Barrett, sophomore Tina Bellhy (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry), Hayes and van Schaik each finished with four blocks in the victory.

The Vulcans opened the match with a 25-18 victory in the first set after recording an impressive .310 hitting percentage with only three errors on 42 attempts. The teams traded the opening points of the set before Cal U mounted a 7-3 run to take an 11-8 lead following a ball handling error. The teams then traded points before the Vulcans won four of the last five points in the set and took a 25-18 win following back-to-back kills by Bellhy and van Schaik.

In the second set, Cal U claimed a 25-16 win after Fairmont State hit at a negative-.143 clip and committed 10 attacking errors in the set. The Vulcans jumped out to a 6-2 lead following a kill by Bellhy before the Fighting Falcons responded with four-straight points to tie the score at 6-6. Cal U then seized control of the set with a 12-3 run and reclaimed the lead at 19-8 after consecutive attacking errors by Fairmont State. The Fighting Falcons countered by claiming seven of the next nine points to cut the deficit to 20-16 before the Vulcans answered with five-unanswered points to win the set at 25-16 on a kill by Hayes.

The third set featured a combined 20 ties and and lead changes before the Fighting Falcons earned a 26-24 victory. The teams traded points for the opening half of the set with no team winning more than back-to-back points before Fairmont State mounted a 6-2 run to take a 17-15 lead on a solo block. The Vulcans won three of the next four points to tie the score at 18-18 before the Fighting Falcons eventually claimed the 26-24 victory. 

Cal U mounted a late comeback attempt in the fourth set before Fairmont State tied the match score with a 25-23 win. The Vulcans used a 7-3 run early in the set to take a 9-7 lead before the Fighting Falcons rallied off nine-unanswered points to reclaim the lead at 16-9. Following its second timeout of the set, Cal U went on a 10-3 run to tie the score at 19-19 on a kill by Bellhy. The Fighting Falcons countered by winning four of the next five points to take a 23-20 lead on a block. Cal U then cut the deficit to 24-23 before Fairmont State won the set at 25-23 with a kill.

In the deciding-fifth set, the Vulcans posted a 15-7 victory and didn't record an attacking error on 23 attempts. Cal U raced out to a commanding 9-2 lead after earning four points on blocks before Fairmont State won three of the four points to cut the deficit to 10-5. The teams traded back-to-back points before the Vulcans completed the match victory with a 15-7 win in the fifth set on a kill by Leto.

Cal U returns to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play this weekend with a pair of matches at PSAC Southeast opponents, beginning Friday, Sept. 30, at East Stroudsburg at 7 p.m.