ALTOONA, Pa. – No. 5 seed La Roche University won the first two sets of Saturday afternoon's Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Women's Volleyball Tournament semifinal round match in the Adler Arena, but No. 1 seed Penn State Altoona roared back to win 3-2 and advance to tomorrow's conference championship match.

La Roche (16-11) pulled out a 28-26 win in the first set, then prevailed 25-17 in the second set to establish a two-set lead in the match. But Penn State Altoona (15-10) stayed alive with a convincing 25-14 victory in the third set, then proceeded to take the fourth and fifth sets by respective scores of 25-18 and 15-10 to complete the comeback.

Penn State Altoona moves on to play in the AMCC championship match tomorrow, Sunday, November 12, at 1 p.m. versus No. 3 seed Alfred State College, the winner of the day's other semifinal match. La Roche is eliminated from the tournament with its loss.

Makenna Port (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte) totaled a match-high 19 points for Penn State Altoona, finishing with a team-best eight total blocks (six solo blocks, two block assists) while adding 12 kills. Lacee Barnhart (Bellefonte, PA/Bald Eagle) had 15.5 points on a team-high 14 kills to go along with one solo block and one block assist, and she also recorded 19 digs.

Taylor Myers (Morrisdale, PA/West Branch) finished with 13 points on 10 kills, a team-best two service aces, and two block assists. Lia Simanski (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) had 9.5 points on nine kills and a block assist, and Karlie Feathers (Bellwood, PA/Bellwood-Antis) contributed 8.5 points on eight kills and a block assist. Simanski also tied for the team lead in digs with 28, and Feathers posted 14 digs.

Julia Emel (Woodward, PA/Penns Valley) put up a match-high 41 assists for the Lions while adding 19 digs.

Anna Batrus (Altoona, PA/Altoona) tied for the team-high in digs with 28.

Penn State Altoona was plagued by miscues in the first set, when the Lions committed 16 attack errors. The home team still managed to work its way out to a seven-point lead, 13-6, but La Roche used a 10-3 run to tie the score at 16. After the teams traded points over the next several plays, the score remained tied, 22-22. La Roche scored the next two points to get to set point, but kills from Simanski and Port kept Penn State Altoona alive, tying the score 24-24. Two points later, a solo block from Port put the Lions up 26-25, but the Redhawks scored three straight points to close out the set in their favor, 28-26.

La Roche kept its momentum going in the second set, as the Redhawks steamrolled out to a 12-point lead, 21-9. Penn State Altoona closed the gap to 23-17 with an 8-2 run, but La Roche ended the set with two points to win it 25-17.

Penn State Altoona bounced back in the third set, during which it never trailed. The Lions had their best hitting performance of the day, swinging at a .308 clip during the set. Two kills in a row from Port helped the home team to a five-point lead, 11-6, and kills from Barnhart and Myers helped increase it to 17-9. Two kills by Feathers got Penn State Altoona's lead to 19-12, and four straight Lion points – including Barnhart and Port kills and a Port solo block – upped the advantage to 10, 23-13. After a La Roche kill, the Redhawks committed a service error to get it to set point, and Batrus' ace sealed a 25-14 victory for the Lions.

In the fourth set, Penn State Altoona again jumped out to a significant lead. Six consecutive Penn State Altoona points early in the set, five of which came courtesy of La Roche errors, helped the Lions to an 11-3 advantage. Redhawk errors continued to aid the Lions, as Penn State Altoona held its eight-point lead, 16-8, later in the set. Kills from Emel and Barnhart helped the Lions eclipse 20 points, putting their team's lead at 21-15. Myers' kill got it to 23-17, and Penn State Altoona won the match 25-18 after a Myers kill and a Port and Feathers duo block.

The two teams battled tightly in the fifth set, before Penn State Altoona pulled away in the latter stages. La Roche worked its way out to a 6-4 lead, but the Lions erased their deficit and jumped ahead with a 4-0 run that included two solo blocks and a kill from Port. Simanski's kill gave Penn State Altoona a 9-6 lead, and two Barnhart kills helped increase it to 12-7. Two more kills by Barnhart got the Lions to set point, 14-10, and a La Roche error ended the set at 15-10 to clinch the win for Penn State Altoona.

Now, Penn State Altoona women's volleyball will look to achieve its third-ever AMCC title. The Lions' last championship win came in 2011.

The winner of tomorrow's AMCC championship match will receive the conference's automatic berth to compete in the NCAA Division III Tournament next week.