PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Volleyball split its two matches on Saturday in Pittsburgh. After opening up with a convincing three-game sweep (25-18, 25-14, 25-18) against Midway (0-7), the Bears (8-3) dropped a heartbreaking five setter (25-18, 20-25, 25-13, 19-25, 15-12) to Point Park (12-2) – a team that was receiving votes in the last NAIA Top 25 Coaches' Poll.
In the opening match against Midway, the Bears used a strong attacking game at the net (.390 hitting percentage) and were a force on the defensive side as well (eight blocks). On the attack, nobody was better in the opening match than freshman Ashley Galbraith. She attempted 14 kill attempts in the opener, killing nine of those shots and did not commit an error to finish with a .643 hitting mark. As a team, the Bears committed just four attack errors over the three games.
Overall, Galbraith was one of four to hit at least .400 in the match and one of seven with at least a .300 hitting percentage. Tiffany Jackson finished with seven kills in 15 attempts and added a solo block, plus three assists, while Kelsey Bielanow killed four of her 10 attacks, but really made her presence known countering the Midway attack, finishing with six block assists. Paige Zelich added six kills, while Kristi Humble added four more to the early sweep.
In the service game, Alex Pohl finished with two service aces to go along with her three kills. Hannah Gephart took over the primary setting responsibilities in the opening match. Gephart would finish with 16 assists in the opening match. Devan Scarberry also racked up 11 assists in the first match to help the winning effort, while Kirsti Yates totaled fifteen digs over the three winning games.
Against Point Park, the Bears actually finished with a better hitting percentage by nearly sixty points, (.310-.245), despite dropping three of the five games. However, Point Park blocked 12 to help them pull out the lengthy battle. It was a balanced effort on the attacking end in the second match as four SSU players finished with nine kills. Jackson finished with a team-high 11 kills in 20 attempts, a .550 hitting percentage. Zelich finished with 10 kills and the leader from the opening match, Galbraith, finished with nine. Galbraith and Jackson also had three block assists each in the five-game match.
Pohl did a little bit of everything in the second match. She recorded 10 kills, 10 blocks, one solo block, five block assists and two service aces. In the second match, it was Scarberry that finished with a team-high 22 assists. Gephart was right behind her with 21 assists, while Yates finished with a match-high 28 digs.
Volleyball will be back on the courts next Weekend at the Cumberland Classic in Tennessee. The tournament will get underway Friday, September 21 with matches against Freed-Hardeman (2 p.m.) and Lindenwood (6 p.m.). On Saturday, the Bear will wrap-up their four match weekend with Martin Methodist (11 a.m.) and Mid-Continent (3 p.m.).
