LANCASTER, Pa. - The Messiah women's volleyball team defeated Penn State Harrisburg Saturday afternoon 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 25-13, 25-10) in their first match of a tri-match at Lancaster Bible College. After dropping the first set, the Falcons roared back with three straight set victories to pick up the match win.
Natalie Marsch helped lead Messiah to victory, recording 17 kills and hitting .433 while
Mary Underman added 16 kills and
Kate Preudhomme registered 11 kills.
They picked up a 3-0 (25-8, 25-21, 25-22) win over Lancaster Bible College in the afternoon tilt. Five Falcons picked up five or more kills in the match, with
Natalie Marsch leading Messiah with eight kills. The doubleheader sweep ends Messiah's regular season with a 25-6 overall record. They are back in action Wednesday night for the MAC Commonwealth tournament semifinals, traveling to Arcadia University for a 7:00 p.m. matchup.
Messiah Defeats Penn State Harrisburg 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 25-13, 25-10)
Slow Start
The two teams battled to an 11-11 tie in the first set, before the Falcons used an 8-1 run to take a 19-12 lead. Two
Heston Cowoski aces along with kills from
Mary Underman,
Kate Preudhomme, and
Natalie Marsch helped fuel the stretch. The Nittany Lions then answered with a 6-0 streak of their own to cut the lead to 19-18. Messiah got a point to go up 20-18 before Penn State Harrisburg took advantage of some sloppy play by the Falcons to go on a 7-0 run to snatch the set 25-20 and go up 1-0 in the match.
Fighting Back
A host of Falcons helped produce a 13-7 lead in game two. Underman recorded three kills, Marsch and Seibert got a pair of kills, while
Rachel Garratt and
Kate Preudhomme chipped in one kill. Messiah continued to extend their lead in the set, grabbing a 19-11 lead before the Nittany Lions forced a Messiah timeout after a 4-0 streak cut the lead to 19-15. Out of the break, Messiah picked up three of the next four points to keep Penn State Harrisburg at bay with a 22-16 advantage. A pair of Marsch kills helped the Falcons win the game 25-18 and tie the match up at 1-1.
Messiah jumped out to a big 19-7 lead in set three with the aid of four Preudhomme kills and three Marsch kills. They extended their lead to 24-10 before a 3-0 burst by the Nittany Lions made it 24-13. A Manwaring kill ended their hopes though, giving Messiah a 25-13 win and a 2-1 match lead.
Knockout Punch
Messiah got out to a 17-7 lead in the fourth set with Underman picking up three kills and Seibert registering two aces and a kill in the stretch. The Falcons were too much to handle in this set, using another three Underman kills and three Marsch kills to win the set 25-10 and take the match 3-1. The Falcons will end their regular season with a match against Lancaster Bible College later this afternoon.
Messiah Defeats Lancaster Bible College 3-0 (25-8, 25-21, 25-22)
Fast Start
In game one, the Falcons found themselves with a big 21-6 lead, thanks to some clumsy Charger play along with three Underman kills. The lead would hold up as
Payton Manwaring,
Rachel Garratt, and
Hannah Berger all registered a kill over the Falcons final four points in a 25-8 set win to give them a 1-0 match lead.
Tight Sets
The Falcons and Chargers were knotted up at 11-11 before Messiah took a 15-11 lead after a 4-1 charge. Leading the way was Berger, who recorded a pair of kills in the run. A 7-1 Lancaster Bible run gave the Chargers a 18-16 lead. The Falcons briefly tied it up at 18-18 before the Chargers battled back again, rattling off two straight points to grab a 20-18 lead. Two Marsch kills tied it back up at 20-20 before Lancaster Bible got in their own way, making errors to give the Falcons their final five points. This gave the Falcons a 25-21 set win and a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Chargers jumped out to a 10-4 advantage in set three after some sloppy play by Messiah. This forced a Falcon timeout. Out of the break, the Falcons clawed back into the set, producing an 8-2 run to tie the set up at 12-12. Leading the charge was Manwaring with a pair of kills. Messiah took a brief 16-14 lead before Lancaster Bible used three straight Ashtyn Bouslog aces to spearhead a 4-0 charge to take a 18-16 lead.
Messiah got a point before Lancaster Bible rattled off two more to make it 20-17. The Falcons then forced a Charger timeout with a huge 4-0 stretch to take back the lead at 21-20. Lancaster Bible tied it up at 21-21 out of the timeout before the Falcons ended the Chargers afternoon with a 4-1 streak that gave them a 25-22 set win. Marsch led Messiah during the run with a pair of kills. This gave the Falcons a 3-0 match win.
What's Up Next
As mentioned, the Falcons move on to the MAC Commonwealth tournament semifinals next week. On Wednesday night they face off with Arcadia University at 7:00 p.m. on the road in Glenside.
