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Photo by Kirk Zembower
Photo by Kirk Zembower

Women’s Volleyball Grinds Out 3-1 Win at Carlow

by Casey Burinskas

PITTSBURGH – The Penn State Altoona women's volleyball team faced off against Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Carlow University in the St. Joseph Athletic and Fitness Center on Tuesday night, when the Celtics conducted their Pink Out match.

Carlow (6-13, 0-3 AMCC) came out strong with a 25-18 victory in the first set, but Penn State Altoona (13-10, 4-0 AMCC) settled in to win the next three sets by scores of 25-20, 25-22, and 25-22 to defeat the Celtics 3-1 in the match.

Taylor Myers (Morrisdale, PA/West Branch) had a team-high 12.5 points for Penn State Altoona, totaling seven kills, a match-high four service aces, and three block assists. Lia Simanski (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) scored 11.5 points on 10 kills, an ace, and a block assist, and Makenna Port (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte) contributed 10 points on eight kills, two block assists, and a solo block.

Maggie Brewer (NuMine, PA/West Shamokin) and Ella Hadley (Spring Mills, PA/Penns Valley) chipped in 7.5 points each, as Brewer had seven kills and a block assist and Hadley finished with six kills, an ace, and a block assist. Jadeyn Price (Altoona, PA/Altoona) tallied five points on four kills and a pair of block assists, and Brianna Woodring (Greencastle, PA/Greencastle-Antrim) served up three aces.

Julia Emel (Woodward, PA/Penns Valley) put up a team-best 23 assists, with Madelyn Rockwell (Tyrone, PA/Tyrone) adding eight assists and a pair of aces.

Anna Batrus (Altoona, PA/Altoona) notched a match-high 32 digs.

In the first set, Altoona was first to place points on the board on a kill from Hadley. More points began to flow in with a service ace from Myers, followed by a kill from Port. Two service errors from the Carlow side helped the Lions to maintain a lead of 9-8 early in the set. Further into the set, Altoona managed to stay in front with a kill from Price and another by Myers. But Carlow took the lead soon after, and the Celtics ultimately pulled away to grab a 25-18 win in the first set.

With Altoona hopeful for a win in the second set, Carlow was quick to pull away with seven points right off the bat, starting the set with leads of 7-0 and 11-1. But the Lions responded quickly, as points started falling in with two kills from Port, a service ace from Myers, and two kills from Brewer, helping Altoona get back to within four, 12-8. Kills from Simanski, Price, and Myers tied the score at 14-14, and two errors from Carlow allowed Altoona to get a much-needed lead, 16-15. With points continuing to bounce back and forth, Altoona was able to pull away late in the set. A kill from Simanski and a block from Brewer and Port made it 23-19, and a service ace from Rockwell gave the second set to Altoona, 25-20.

Now tied at 1-1, both teams were looking for the chance to pull ahead in the third set. Altoona was quick to put points on the scoreboard, as kills from Brewer, Myers, and Hadley gave the Lions a 3-0 start. Continuing on, Altoona got more kills from Brewer, Hadley, Simanski, and Port, along with two Myers aces, to go up 17-13. Two more kills from Simanski, followed by a kill from Hadley, started the race to the end. Back-to-back kills from Brewer and Myers landed the score at 23-17, and a block from Myers and Simanski gave Altoona the final point, as the Lions pulled off another win, 25-22.

Beginning the fourth set, Altoona scored first with a kill from Hadley. Another point racked up by Hadley consisted of a service ace, and kills from Simanski, Brewer, Port, and Price helped the Lions to a 12-6 lead. With Carlow starting to come back to try and regain the lead, Altoona responded with a kill from Port that set the score at 13-9. Two Carlow points later, Altoona scored three in a row on a Port kill, a Celtic attack error, and a block from Myers and Price. A Myers kill and three more Carlow errors helped Altoona increase its lead to eight points, 20-12. Nearing the end of the set, Carlow made a late push to get back to within two points, 24-22. But an attack error by the Celtics gave the Lions the 25th point, as Altoona held on for a 25-22 win in the fourth set, defeating Carlow by a final score of 3-1 in the match.

Next up, the Penn State Altoona women's volleyball team will take on AMCC opponent Pitt-Bradford at home this Saturday, October 26, at 1 p.m. The Lions will celebrate their seniors in a pre-match ceremony.