MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – Penn State Harrisburg's women's volleyball team hosted Alvernia and Marywood for tri-match action at the Capital Union Building, falling to the Golden Wolves in the opener before bouncing back with a sweep of the Pacers on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 25.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Penn State Harrisburg dropped a 3-1 decision to Alvernia by set scores 25-14, 20-25, 25-21, and 25-17 in Saturday's tri-match opener before sweeping Marywood 3-0 in the final contest thanks to set scores of 25-19, 25-17, and 25-13.

The Golden Wolves (5-7) took the first set but the Blue & White (6-5) evened things up with a second set victory that saw them jump out to an early 9-5 lead following kills from Melanie Sheaffer and Tiniira Tubo off assists from Katie Richardson. The Lions stretched the advantage to 19-13 before the visitors used a 6-0 run to draw even but Penn State Harrisburg closed things out on a 6-1 stretch capped by a Sheaffer kill.

The home team battled in the third set but ultimately was unable to erase a late six-point deficit. Alvernia used a key 8-0 run midway through set four to put things out of reach and secure the victory in the day's first match.

Against the Pacers (7-6), the Blue & White jumped out to a 6-2 advantage in the opening set and rode that momentum to an early win. It was more of the same in the second set, as an 8-0 run midway through the game stretched the advantage to 12-4 following a Megan Morris service ace and Sheaffer kill. Marywood stayed within striking distance the rest of the way but Anna Ruff eventually closed it out with a kill off an assist from Alyssa Snyder.

The third and final set was all Penn State Harrisburg, with the home team racing out to a 10-3 lead thanks to a Snyder kill off an Olivia Koicuba feed before the advantage ballooned to double digits following a Snyder service ace. The Lions eventually closed things out with a 7-2 run that culminated with an Alexa Henry kill off a pass from Snyder.

NOTABLES

- Against Marywood, Anna Ruff and Melanie Sheaffer each tallied eight kills, while Tiniira Tubo finished with seven.

- Megan Morris recorded a match-high five service aces in the day's final contest.

- Alyssa Snyder racked up 35 assists against the Pacers.

- Julia Choe dug out a team-best nine balls against MU, Alyssa Snyder had eight digs, and Corrinne Cook finished with seven.

- In the opener, Sheaffer tallied a team-high 12 kills, while Ruff had seven of her own.

- Katie Richardson assisted on 37 points against Alvernia.

- Morris racked up a match-high 21 digs against the Golden Wolves and Richardson added 10.

- Olivia Koicuba notched a pair of service aces against AU.

WHO'S NEXT?

The Lions close out the month by hosting Hood for a non-conference match on Thursday night, Sept. 30. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

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