Media, Pa- In a weekend chalk-full of PSUAC matches, the Penn State Greater Allegheny women's volleyball team used a dominating performance to defeat Penn State Schuylkill 3-0 (25-5, 25-19, 25-11), before dropping a difficult second match against Penn State Brandywine, 3-0 (10-25, 18-25, 10-25). The Sunday matches against Penn State York and Penn State Mont Alto were cancelled, and will be rescheduled TBA.
In set one against Schuylkill, four straight service aces from freshman Haley Worden (Madonna, PA) gave Greater Allegheny an early 6-1 advantage. GA then sprinted out to a huge 16-3 lead, following a kill from sophomore Audra Besnak (Steel Valley, PA). Without allowing Schuylkill to hit double-digits, Greater Allegheny would take the set, 25-5.
In a much tighter second set- one featuring six ties- GA finally gained a late 20-17 lead, when sophomore Alyssa Finocchi (Baldwin, PA) drilled a kill. Greater Allegheny took control of the final five points, winning 25-19.
The third set played out in much the same fashion as the first, with GA gaining an early 10-6 lead; two straight service aces from Besnak lifted GA to the advantage. Cruising the remainder of the set, Greater Allegheny clinched the match with a 25-11 win.
All six of the GA players recorded a kill, led by Finocchi's eight. Worden (3), Besnak (2), sophomore Corinne Wilson (Bethel Park, PA) (3), sophomore Christina Floyd (St. John Neumann, PA) (2), and freshman Kayla Franklin (Thurston, MI) (2) also recorded kills. As a team, Greater Allegheny accumulated 22 service aces, with Worden nailing 10 of her own.
In the second match of the day, GA bounced back from a tough 25-10 loss in set one, to lead Brandywine 9-7 in set two, following a kill from Floyd. After battling to keep the set tight, Greater Allegheny came up just short, falling 25-18. GA again fought hard in the third set, tying the score at 7-7 mid-way through. However, Brandywine would fend off the Greater Allegheny women the rest of the way, winning 25-10.
Finocchi led GA with four kills and eight digs, while Besnak and Floyd added three each. Floyd also had five digs, with Worden contributing seven assists.
Greater Allegheny improves its record to 5-7 overall and 3-2 in the PSUAC. They will return to the court Tuesday, October 2 for a 6 PM match against Westmoreland CC.
