ALTOONA, Pa. – The Penn State Altoona women's volleyball team wrapped up its regular season home schedule on Saturday morning, hosting Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference foe Alfred State College in the league's Match of the Week in the Adler Arena.

Penn State Altoona (11-10, 6-1 AMCC) pulled out a 3-2 victory over Alfred State (13-8, 5-2 AMCC) in a back-and-forth match that featured 37 tie scores and 20 lead changes throughout.

The Pioneers came back from a big deficit in the first set to win it 28-26, but Penn State Altoona evened the match score with a lopsided 25-11 victory in the second. Alfred State won the third set 25-21, but the Lions were able to grind out a 28-26 win in the fourth to stay alive. In the fifth set, Penn State Altoona overcame an Alfred State lead to triumph 16-14.

Prior to the match, the Lions recognized their senior players, Lacee Barnhart (Bellefonte, PA/Bald Eagle) and Karlie Feathers (Bellwood, PA/Bellwood-Antis), as part of the team's Senior Day celebration.

Taylor Myers (Morrisdale, PA/West Branch) finished with a team-high 18 points for Penn State Altoona on 14 kills, two service aces, two block assists, and one solo block. Barnhart had 16 points on a team-best 15 kills while adding one ace, and she also tallied 25 digs.

Feathers totaled 13 points on nine kills, two block assists, and a team-leading three aces. Lia Simanski (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) had 12 points on 10 kills and a pair of aces, and Makenna Port (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte) ended with 10 points on eight kills, two block assists, and one solo block.

Julia Emel (Woodward, PA/Penns Valley) put up a team-high 27 assists, and Abigail Brinker (Lock Haven, PA/PHAA) posted 20 assists.

Anna Batrus (Altoona, PA/Altoona) had a team-high 26 digs.

In the first set, Penn State Altoona built a nine-point lead, 13-4, only to see Alfred State come back to eventually win. The Pioneers got to set point, 24-23, but a Morgan Fussell (Blairsville, GA/Union County) kill and an Alfred State error put the Lions in front, 25-24. The visitors again jumped back in front, 26-25, before another Alfred State miscue evened the score at 26 points apiece. But the Pioneers scored the next two points to win the set, 28-26.

Penn State Altoona bounced back in a big way during the second set, winning it by 14 points. Trailing 7-6, the Lions embarked on an 8-0 run that included two kills from Barnhart and two aces by Simanski to go up 14-7. Later, Penn State Altoona boosted its lead to 18-10 following three straight points on kills by Barnhart and Myers and a combo block from Feathers and Myers. After an Alfred State kill, the Lions finished the set by scoring the last seven points, including two kills from Feathers during that span.

Alfred State scored the first three points of the third and were able to maintain a modest lead for most of the set. Penn State Altoona was able to nab the lead midway through the set, however, using kills by Myers and Port and an Alfred State error to go ahead 15-14. One point later, a Simanski kill and a Pioneer attack error helped the Lions to a 17-15 advantage. A kill by Port put Penn State Altoona up by one, 18-17, but Alfred State reclaimed the lead after that and never relinquished it for the remainder of the set. Ahead 22-21, the Pioneers scored three points in a row to end the set at 25-21 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The fourth set was another hotly contested affair, with both teams trading points in the latter stages. With Alfred State leading 23-22, a Simanski kill and Pioneer attack error put the Lions in front, 24-23. The teams swapped service errors and kills over the next four points, and Penn State Altoona found itself still on top by one, 26-25. An Alfred State block tied the score at 26-26, but the visitors committed a service error on the next play, and a duo block from Feathers and Myers gave Penn State Altoona a 28-26 victory to even the match score at 2-2.

Alfred State opened the fifth set by working its way out to a 9-3 lead. Penn State Altoona trimmed its deficit to three, following three straight hitting errors by the Pioneers, one of which resulted in a block from Fussell and Port. After two Alfred State points put the visitors' lead at five, 11-6, the Lions reeled off a 6-0 run to take their first lead of the set. The six-point surge included four Barnhart kills and gave Penn State Altoona a 12-11 advantage. Alfred State responded by scoring three of the next four points, getting to match point, 14-13. But another Pioneer service error kept Penn State Altoona alive, and back-to-back kills from Simanski propelled the Lions to a 16-14 win that gave the team a five-set victory in the match.

Next up, Penn State Altoona will close out its regular season on the road with three away matches, two of which are important AMCC contests. The Lions' next event is Tuesday, October 31, when the team will head to Pittsburgh to face conference opponent La Roche University at 7 p.m.