CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Sept. 1) – Head coach Peter Letourneau became the all-time winningest coach in program history on Friday, as the Vulcans started the year with a split at the Queens Invitational with a 3-1 loss to the host Royals before claiming a 3-2 victory over Winston-Salem State.

Letourneau entered the season tied for first place in school history with Melissa Myers, who was inducted into the Cal U Athletic Hall of Fame this spring. He now boasts a 162-59 overall record and a .733 winning percentage in seven years with the program. Letourneau has guided the program to a pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships and five appearances in the NCAA Tournament.

Against Queens, the Vulcans won the opening set before suffering the 3-1 loss (21-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-11) to the Royals, who advanced to the regional finals of the NCAA Tournament last year as a seventh seed. Sophomore Rachel Priore (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) led the team with 16 kills while posting a .361 hitting percentage. Senior Ashley Leto (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) and junior Tina Bellhy (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry) added nine and eight kills, respectively, in the loss. Senior Taylor Solo (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) directed the offense with 40 assists.

Junior libero Marisa Fanelli (Ashburn, Va./Broad Run) paced the defense with a career-high 24 digs, while Leto tallied 10 digs in the match. Solo and freshman Jensen Silbaugh (Warren, Ohio/Lakeview) both collected eight digs against Queens. The trio of Bellhy, freshman Madison Kline (Hastings, Pa./Cambria Heights) and junior Lois van Schaik (Naarden, Netherlands/St. Vituscollege) each recorded three block assists in the opening match.

Against Winston-Salem State, Cal U rallied to capture a 3-2 victory (23-25, 25-22, 25-20, 25-27, 15-9) while hitting over a .300 clip in two sets. Priore led four players in double-digit kills by setting a career high with 20 kills and hitting at a .304 clip. Leto posted 14 kills on a .256 hitting percentage, while van Schaik and Bellhy tallied 13 and 10 kills, respectively. Solo shattered her career high set in 2014 by collecting 52 assists against the Rams.

The Vulcans featured a balanced defensive effort, as five players recorded at least 10 digs. Fanelli led the team with 16 digs, while Solo and Leto completed double-doubles with 14 and 12 digs, respectively. Silbaugh and fellow freshman Kateri Wess (Catonsville, Md./Catonsville) both finished with 10 digs in the victory. Bellhy and Fanelli each collected three service aces in the victory.

Cal U returns to action at the Queens Invitational tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 2, when it faces Columbus State (Ga.) and Shorter (Ga.), starting at 10 a.m.