Neumann Box Score | Salisbury Box Score | St. John Fisher Box Score | Northland Box Score
Gettysburg, PA — Given Messiah's mass inexperience at the collegiate level of play, the Falcons' results at this weekend's Gettysburg College Battlefield Classic may have been somewhat expected, as the team finished the two-day event with a 1-3 record.
Messiah (1-4) opened the weekend with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-21) blanking of Neumann College Friday afternoon, but followed with a 0-3 nightcap loss to Salisbury University and a pair of 1-3 defeats Saturday: The Falcons fell to St. John's Fisher College by a 22-25, 17-25, 25-17, 25-16 count, and concluded play with a 19-25, 30-28, 16-25, 18-25 loss to Northland College.
“I didn't realize that our inexperience would show quite so boldly,” said Judi Tobias, Messiah head coach. “While it was nice to get our first win of the year on Friday, I think we're a little behind where I expected us to be at this point. We've got to improve in a lot of areas, and that's what we'll set out to do.”
The Falcons — boasting a total eight sophomores and three freshmen on a 14-player roster — got off to a great start Friday, demonstrating their ability to win close sets, sweeping the Knights by a combined score of just eight points.
Tobias' troops turned in a cumulative team attack percentage of .157 in that match, led by freshman Lindsay King's .400 average. In both the second and the third games, the Falcons hit at a .333 clip as a team.
“We were okay against Neumann,” Tobias said. “We're learning to play together, and with not much experience returning to the court for us, that is a really big thing.”
Sophomore and team newcomer Megan Wise led the squad in digs, contributing with 12 of the team's input of 41. The Falcons dominated Neumann (0-3) in total blocks, 6.5 to 0.
Messiah's offense was accomplished by committee, as no individual player registered a double-digit tally in kills. Sophomores Cassy Diamond and Emily Hall each finished with six attacks for points, while freshman Ann Reck led the team with 10 kills.
A disappointing showing against Salisbury (2-0) set the tone for the remainder of the tournament, as the Falcons failed to reach the 20-point plateau in any of the three sets. No player recorded more than two kills in that match, while the team hit at a -.130 clip — it's only negative performance of the weekend.
“We were simply outmatched against Salisbury for several reasons,” Tobias said. “I think we would be much more competitive later in the season, and you could say that about all of our matches this weekend, really.”
Against St. John Fisher (3-1), Tobias' club showed resilence, fighting back from a 2-0 deficit to steal the third set, 25-17. However, they fell short in the fourth and final set, 25-16.
Diamond led the squad in kills (10) in that match, while King added nine on a team-leading .194 hitting clip. Wise led a trio of double-figure dig-getters, as sophomore Brittany Salloum provided 15 and senior Lauren Bourdon 12.
In wrapping up tournament action against Northland (1-5), Messiah again managed just one victory in the match, but it was a beauty, as the Falcons won a dramatic 30-28 overtime contest in the second.
The Falcons averaged a .196 attack percentage as a team throughout the match, including a .263 mark in the third set and .237 in the fourth.
Diamond and Hall teamed with sophomore Brynn Lettieri to pace the squad's offense, generating nine, eight and eight kills, respectively. Wise again led the team in defensive digs, contributing 16 of the team's 42 scoops. Bourdon dished out a tournament-high 39 assists in the defeat as well.
“Our consistency and continuity was not good this weekend, and that's something we'll have to improve on as well,” Tobias said. “I think playing at home will be good, if we can keep our nerves in check.”
The Falcons will open its home slate against Philadelphia Biblical University on Thursday evening in Brubaker Auditorium. Match time is set for 7 p.m.
