Box Score
Grantham, PA — Last year, it was considered strange. Wednesday evening — from Messiah's perspective, anyway — it began to get downright disturbing.
For the fourth time in the Falcons' last six meetings with Commonwealth Conference rival Elizabethtown College, the teams went the distance into a fifth set. And, for the fourth time in the teams' last six meetings, Elizabethtown came away victorious by a 15-12 score in the final stanza.
The latest eerie coincidence came to fruition via a 3-2 (20-25, 25-18, 23-25, 25-22, 12-15) Blue Jays' decision in Brubaker Auditorium, keeping a streak alive that Messiah head coach Judi Tobias would rather forget.
“It's weird,” she said after the latest 15-12 heartbreaker to the Falccons' league rivals. “It's really weird. But when we went into the fifth set tonight, I really thought we were going to beat them 15-12. I really did.”
Her tongue was not in cheek. Messiah (14-5, 3-1) repeatedly came from behind throughout the evening's action, claiming second- and fourth-set wins after E'Town (13-7, 3-1) took 1-0 and 2-1 set leads.
Then the fifth and final frame began, and it appeared that the Falcons would get nowhere near 12 points — ever. E'Town rattled off the first four points of the shortened set, taking a 4-0 lead after an attack error from sophomore Ann Reck.
Tobias called timeout.
“It was not the hole you want to dig yourself into, but I was pleased with how we competed all night. I knew we would not go down without a fight.”
Messiah did just that, slowly turning a 2-6 deficit into a 10-10 tie. Sophomore Lindsay King had three kills during that stretch, and classmate Lauren Rees had two. A pair of Falcons' attack errors helped the Blue Jays regain a 12-10 lead, but when sophomore Ann Reck rattled off back-to-back kills, the score was again knotted, and Brubaker threatened to come unglued.
Sadly, that would be as close as the hosts would come.
A kill from the Blue Jays' Holly Bubb put the visitors back in front 13-12, and when E'Town teamed up to block a kill attempt from Reck on the ensuing exchange, the score was 14-12.
Tobias called her final timeout, but it couldn't help turn the tide. Junior Emily Hall had her swing blocked by Elizabethtown's Kelsey Hayes and Crystal Agnew, and the Blue Jays had escaped with yet another 15-12 decision in a five-set match.
“I know we didn't win it, but I was excited about the level we played,” Tobias said. “It was exciting to play at a higher level than what's been required of us. We proved we can play with the best in our region.”
A big part of Messiah's success came from King and Rees, as the sophomore tandem played beyond their years at the net. Rees charted a career-high 21 kills on 44 swings, hitting at a .341 clip. King, meanwhile, posted 13 kills to go with a remarkable six solo blocks — being a part of four block assists as well.
In the back row, Tobias' club was led by Rees' 22 digs, although junior Megan Wise may have had the most memorable scoops, keeping the ball off the floor 17 times.
“Megan Wise had some incredible digs, and her passing was just brilliant,” Tobias said. “Lauren and Lindsay were stellar for us. For the most part, we played as a unit.”
Ironically, Messiah's most efficient offensive set came in the third, where the team hit at a .206 clip overall. The Falcons had that stanza knotted at 23-23 before E'Town closed with a pair of kills — those coming from Katie Gantz and Bubb.
Messiah then opened up a 20-16 lead in the fourth set, holding on to a 23-22 lead before utilizing kills from King and Rees to force the fifth and final stanza.
“I thought we played E'Town well,” Tobias said. “There were several long rallies, and it was a very competitive match. These kids are a true team. They'll come back into the gym tomorrow, ready to go.”
While the early-season match-up may have post-season consequences down the line, there is still much volleyball to be played. Ironically, Messiah will remain idle through the week, next facing off against Commonwealth Conference favorite Lebanon Valley College next Wednesday. Match time is set for 7 p.m.
