ALFRED, N.Y. – The Penn State Altoona women's volleyball team suffered its first Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference loss of the season on Saturday, when the Lions fell 3-1 to Alfred State College in the Orvis Gymnasium.

Alfred State (17-6, 6-1 AMCC) came back to win the first set 27-25, but Penn State Altoona (15-11, 6-1 AMCC) got on the board with a strong 25-17 victory in the second set. However, the Pioneers again rallied for wins of 27-25 and 25-21 in the third and fourth sets to defeat the Lions.

Lia Simanski (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) had a team-best 12 points on 11 kills and a service ace, and Ella Hadley (Spring Mills, PA/Penns Valley) had 11 points on eight kills and a team-high three aces.

Maggie Brewer (NuMine, PA/West Shamokin) added eight points on seven kills and a block, Taylor Myers (Morrisdale, PA/West Branch) had seven points on four kills, two blocks, and an ace, and Makenna Port (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte) totaled six points on five kills and a block.

Julia Emel (Woodward, PA/Penns Valley) had 13 assists, and Madelyn Rockwell (Tyrone, PA/Tyrone) added 12 assists.

Anna Batrus (Altoona, PA/Altoona) recorded a team-high 15 digs and chipped in a pair of aces.

In the opening set, Penn State Altoona scored the first three points on an Alfred State attack error, a Simanski kill, and a Hadley ace. An ace by Myers and kills from Simanski and Hadley kept the advantage at three, 8-5, before the Pioneers worked their way into the lead midway through the set. Trailing 19-18 later, the Lions scored four straight points on a pair of Alfred State attack errors and two kills by Simanski, jumping ahead 22-19. Penn State Altoona got to set point, 24-22, but a pair of errors kept the Pioneers alive and knotted the score at 24-24. An Alfred State service error provided the next point for the Lions, but the Pioneers got two kills and an error to rattle off three straight points, ending the set at 27-25 for the home team.

Penn State Altoona worked its way out to an 8-4 lead to begin the second set, helped by five Pioneer errors. Kills from Brewer, Hadley, Jadeyn Price (Altoona, PA/Altoona), and Myers helped the Lions increase their lead to 16-10, and a Port kill later widened the gap to 10 points, 21-11. An ace from Batrus and kill from Myers got Penn State Altoona to set point, 24-14, and an Alfred State service error ultimately provided the 25^th point for the Lions, who won the second set by a 25-17 margin.

Alfred State scored the first three points of the third set, but Penn State Altoona was able to leap in front soon thereafter, and a Myers solo block set the Lions' lead at three points, 12-9. The teams traded points, with the Pioneers chipping away at their deficit and eventually getting back into the lead, 21-18. Penn State Altoona rallied to tie the score at 23-23 and 24-24, and a Brewer kill kept things knotted up at 25-25. But a Lion service error and Alfred State kill gave the Pioneers the third set, 27-25.

Down 2-0 in the fourth set, Penn State Altoona reeled off five straight points, including a Hadley kill and ace, to seize the lead. Later, ahead 12-11, the Lions scored five in a row, including getting two kills apiece from Simanski and Port, to establish a 17-11 advantage. However, with Penn State Altoona ahead 19-14, Alfred State embarked on a 7-0 run to take its first lead since the early stages of the set. A pair of Pioneer service errors helped the Lions stay within one point, 22-21, but Alfred State got three straight points to win the set 25-21 and notch the match victory.

Next up, Penn State Altoona women's volleyball season will close its regular season schedule with a home match against AMCC opponent La Roche University on Tuesday, November 5, at 7 p.m.