Monaca, PA - The Penn State Greater Allegheny Volleyball team (0-2, 0-0) kicked off the 2018-2019 season on Friday at the Penn State Beaver Tournament. They dropped both halves of their double header falling to Carlow 3-0 and UM-Fort Kent 3-1.
The first game of the day pitted PSUGA against Carlow where they fell in three sets 25-11, 25-8, and 25-17. The team was working on gelling through their first game and couldn't get much going on offense.
They got their first set win in the second game of the day, however, it was not enough to win the match as they fell to UMFK 3 sets to 1. After dropping the first two sets 25-15 and 25-8, they found their offensive groove in the third set.
They battled the Bengals to a tie at the end of the 25-point battle forcing the set into a two point situation. PSUGA was the one who would come out with the upper hand taking the set 28-26.
In the end, they couldn't find the momentum to take the match falling in the 4th set 25-16 to give UMFK the 3 sets to 1 win. While they lost the match, PSUGA can take some confidence from this game after taking a set from one of the top teams in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association.
They rounded out the tournament with a day two matchup against PSUAC foe Penn Stae Beaver. With their first taste of conference play, they fought hard through the first two sets falling 25-19 and 25-22 hanging with one of the top teams in the PSUAC. However, PSUGA could not keep the fight up falling in the final set 25-9 to round up the three sets to nothing loss.
Sueriah Timsah (Mesquite, TX./West Mesquite HS) had a big weekend combining for 15 kills in 48 total attack opportunities between the three contests. Alix Ellis (Derry, PA./Derry Area HS) followed her effort with 16 kills in 50 attack opportunities. The freshman from this year’s team stepped up and made their mark on the offensive side of the ball. On the defensive side of the ball, Kimmy Tinker (Ewing, IL./Benton Consolidated HS) led the way with 23 digs and Ellis added 11 of her own.
The opening weekend gave the PSUGA Volleyball team a chance to measure up against some of the top competition from around the USCAA and the PSUAC. They can now take these lessons and work on what they need to improve before their next game.
PSUGA Volleyball starts the home half of their 2018-2019 regular season when they take on Point Park at 7 p.m. inside the Wunderly Gymnasium. Doors open at 6 p.m. followed by the contest at 7 pm.
