WEST CHESTER, Pa.- The West Chester University women's volleyball team (1-3) returned to action on Saturday for the final two matches of its opening weekend vs Jefferson and Wilmington. West Chester opened its day with a convincing 3-0 victory over Jefferson, led by a double-double from freshman
Anna Richardson (Smyrna, Del./Smyrna), who finished with 10 kills and 11 digs before falling to Wilmington by a 3-1 final in the nightcap.
Match 1: WCU 3 Jefferson 0
West Chester and Jefferson traded runs early but it was the Golden Rams, who got on a 4-1 run to take a 15-12 lead and force a Jefferson timeout. Jefferson kept things close as the first set continued but two big kills from
Zoe Haines (York, Pa./York Suburban) along with a kill from
Anna Richardson (Smyrna, Del./Smyrna) gave West Chester a 23-18 lead late in the first set. Jefferson mounted a comeback late in the set, cutting the WCU lead to 24-23 before a combo block from newcomers Richardson and
Julia Kwitchoff (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Wheatfield).
Following its hard-fought triumph in the first set, West Chester wasted little time in capturing the second set, quickly turning a 10-5 lead into a 20-9 lead and eventually claiming the second set by a 25-10 final.
Jefferson battled back in the third set, jumping out to a 11-6 lead before West Chester clawed its way back into the set, eventually claiming a 19-17 lead late in the set. The Golden Rams eventually extended their lead to 23-18 before a quick Jefferson spurt cut the lead back to 23-20, prompting a WCU timeout as Bellaver looked to give her charges a late-set breather. This timeout worked perfectly for the Golden Rams as they quickly halted the Jefferson run with a block by Haines and
Nicole Dimiris (Hockessin, Del./Saint Marks) before claiming the match by a 25-20 final after an error by the Rams on the final point.
Haines and Richardson led the team in kills with 12 and 10 each, while Haines chipped in four blocks to go along with two aces from Richardson.
Megan St. Jean (Eaton, Co./Eaton) led the squad in aces with four, while also adding 13 assists, which was second only to
Lacie Brown (Cochranville, Pa./Avon Grove) and her 19 helpers. Richardson also led the team in digs with 11, while Dimiris led the way in blocks with six to help guide West Chester to its first victory of the young season.
For Jefferson, Emily McKenna led the way in kills with 13 thanks in large part to 18 assists by Kristine Guenther. Cameron Johnson worked hard defensively, finishing the match with a match-high 21 digs, while also finishing as one of three Rams with an ace in the setback.
Match 2: Wilmington 3 WCU 1
West Chester got out to an early 8-6 lead before a 7-1 run by Wilmington gave the Wildcats a 13-9 lead and prompted a Golden Ram timeout. The timeout did its job as Richardson halted the run briefly with a kill, this eventually helped West Chester tie the set up at 16-16 before another 3-0 run by the visitors gave Wilmington a 19-16 lead entering the late stages of the set. West Chester continued to battle down the stretch of the first set, cutting into the Wildcat lead consistently before the guests escaped with a 25-18 first-set victory.
In the second, West Chester and Wilmington traded runs throughout the set. West Chester used an early set run that allowed the Golden Rams to maintain a slim lead throughout much of the set and eventually used this advantage to even the match at 1-1 with a 25-18 second set victory. Brown got West Chester to set point with an impressive kill off a serve before an ace by Richardson evened the match at 1-1.
Seeking to avenge its second-set loss, Wilmington roared out to a 9-3 lead to open the third set, leading to another quick Golden Ram timeout. Bellaver's timeout did its job as West Chester cut the deficit to just one (13-12) before another 3-0 run stretched the Wilmington advantage back to four and forced the second Golden Ram timeout. West Chester continued its comeback bid, tying the score at 17-17 and later cutting the deficit to just two (24-22) before Wilmington escaped with a 25-22 third set victory to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
West Chester and Wilmington traded points throughout the fourth set until the Wildcats inched out to a 19-16 lead, prompting the first Golden Ram timeout of the fourth set. West Chester cut into the Wilmington lead once more, making the score 19-20 in favor of Wilmington after a kill by Haines before a pair of blocks extended the Wildcat advantage to 22-19. Wilmington used this three-point edge to escape Hollinger with a 25-20 fourth set victory and a 3-1 win in the match.
Haines led the team in kills once again, finishing with 10, which tied with
Julia Kwitchoff for the team lead. Brown continued to help control the offense, posting a team-best 19 assists to go along with 17 from St. Jean, while the duo also ranked first and second in aces with four and three each. Haines and Dimiris tied for the team lead in blocks with three each, while Heffner led the squad in digs with 16.
Karla Nunez-Rivera led the way in kills with 13 to go along with 10 from Crystal Creek. Cam Justus controlled the offense as she had all weekend, finishing with a team-best 22 assists, while Gabrielle Barth finished with 16 digs to lead the defense. Shannen Litten also made an impact defensively for Wilmington, finishing with five blocks in the victory.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Tuesday night at Goldey-Beacom beginning at 7 p.m.
