INDIANA, Pa. (Sept. 23) – In its first action in a week, the California (PA) volleyball team suffered a 3-0 loss (25-17, 25-18, 25-15) at IUP on Friday night in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.

With the loss, the Vulcans drop to 7-5 overall behind a 1-2 record in league play. Cal entered the match having won four of the last five meetings in the series. Meanwhile, the Crimson Hawks improve to 12-2 this season with a 2-1 mark in divisional action under first-year head coach Lorelle Hoyer.

Sophomore Allie Droneberger (North Beach, Md./Northern) led the team with five kills on Friday and senior Kaylin Burkey (Boardman, Ohio/Boardman) finished with four kills. Freshmen Ashley Barnes (Crofton, Md./Arundel) and Adrianna Favata (Peoria, Ariz./Liberty) combined for 10 assists in the contest. Junior libero Emily Buwawa (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands) paced the defensive effort with seven digs, while senior Chelsea Howard (Atlanta, Ga./North Atlanta) and junior Alayja Floyd (Pickerington, Ohio/Pickerington Central) both tallied a pair of blocks.

The Crimson Hawks led for the duration of the first set after racing out to a 5-0 lead. IUP later tallied six-straight points to extend the lead to 12-3 before Cal won three-consecutive points. The Crimson Hawks then claimed four of six points before the teams later traded six-straight points with IUP holding a 19-13 lead. IUP rallied off five-unanswered points before Cal staved off set point with four-consecutive points. The Crimson Hawks followed with a kill to earn the set victory, 25-17.

Cal committed 10 attacking errors in the second set, as IUP again led for the entire set. The Crimson Hawks held an early 7-1 lead before the Vulcans worked the deficit to 12-8 following back-to-back blocks. Cal later won three-straight points to cut the lead to 15-12 on a service ace by Floyd. The Crimson Hawks earned four of five points to stretch the lead to 20-13 before the Vulcans called a timeout. Cal then captured four of five points before IUP closed the set by winning four of five points, 25-18.

The Crimson Hawks completed the match victory by totaling 14 kills and hitting at nearly a .300 clip in the third set. Cal won five of seven points early in the set to take a 5-3 lead before IUP countered with five of six points to claim an 8-6 lead.  The Crimson Hawks later seized control of the set with a 10-2 run to take an 18-9 lead and eventually held a 22-11 advantage after claiming four of five points. Cal trimmed the deficit to 22-15 with four-straight points before IUP finished the match with three-consecutive points, 25-15.

Cal continues its weekend road trip tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 24, when it travels to face Clarion at 1 p.m.