ERIE, Pa. (Sept. 6) – The Thiel College Women's Volleyball team posted victories of 3-1 over Houghton and 3-0 over Penn State Behrend Saturday to complete a weekend sweep at the Penn State Behrend Tournament from the Junker Center in Erie, Pa.
The Tomcats, after an 0-2 start to the year, push their winning streak to five as they rise to 5-2 on the year while the Highlanders drop to 1-1 and the Lions fall to 7-1.
Thiel 3, Houghton 1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-21, 25-16)
Trailing 10-9 in set 1, Thiel used a 4-0 run to lead 13-10 as
Arin DeLattre (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) notched two kills and a solo block in the run. Knotted at 21, Thiel ended the set on a 4-0 run with a Houghton attacking error, ace from
Kylee Jordan (Orrville, Ohio/Waynedale) and kills from
Daisy Jenness (Pendleton, Ore./Pendleton) and DeLattre.
DeLattre posted 10 kills on a match-leading .364 to go with four blocks (1 BS, 3 BA) and seven digs. Jenness logged a match-best 18 kills and dug 11 balls for her second double-double of the season. She added a pair of blocks.
Houghton ended set two on a 7-1 run to even the match at 1. The Tomcats used a 6-1 set-three run to erase a 12-8 deficit and lead 14-13. The Highlanders pulled ahead 21-20, but the Tomcats ended the set with 5 straight points to pull ahead 2-1.
Lyndzee Amory (Edinboro, Pa./Saegertown), Jenness and DeLattre had kills in the run while Jordan and DeLattre combined for a combo block.
Jordan posted four kills, two blocks and two digs while Amory added a pair of kills and blocks.
Thiel used a 4-0 run in set four to pull ahead 9-5 as
Carlie Reynolds (Grove City, Pa./Grove City Area) had two aces to end the run. A 6-0 Tomcats run grew the Blue and Gold's lead to 20-13 as Reynolds, again, had a pair of aces to end the run. An Amory-DeLattre block ended the match to give Thiel the win.
Reynolds dished out a match-leading 37 assists, served a match-best five aces and dug six balls.
Danielle Aulet (Lawrence, Kan./Mineral Ridge) dug a match-pacing 18 balls from the libero spot.
Thiel 3, Penn State Behrend 0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-19)
Thiel jumped to a 5-1 lead in set one and led by at least four for the rest of the set as the Blue and Gold hit .321 in the frame and held Penn State Behrend to .081.
The Tomcats used a 7-0 run in set two to extend their lead to 15-7 as DeLattre had a pair of kills in the run. The Lions used a 10-4 spurt to get within 1 at 22-21, but Thiel played sideout volleyball the rest of the frame as a DeLattre-Reynolds stuff block ended the frame.
DeLattre had match bests in kills (nine) and blocks (five). Reynolds had match bests in assists (34) and digs (12) for her fourth double-double of the season.
Reynolds stats
An 8-1 run in set three turned a 7-5 deficit into a 13-8 Tomcats lead. Kills from
Caitlin Stephens (West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex) and Jenness spearheaded a 5-1 spurt capped with an Amory kill to give Thiel a 22-15 lead. The Tomcats cruised the rest of the way to seal the match and weekend sweep.
Jenness totaled eight kills and six digs while Stephens added six kills on a match-best .545. Amory pitched in seven kills, three digs and two block assists.
Aulet dug 11 balls at the libero spot as the Tomcats held the edge in digs 47-37.
Looking Ahead
Thiel will head to Fredonia next Tuesday for a 6 p.m. non-conference match. The Tomcats bested the Blue Devils 3-1 Friday evening.
