YORK, Pa. - On Wednesday evening, the Messiah women's volleyball team picked up another MAC Commonwealth win, defeating York College of Pa 3-1 (26-24, 25-20, 11-25, 25-16) to improve to 17-5 on the season and 5-0 in Conference play. The Falcons found themselves trailing 22-16 late in the first set. But the Falcons used an 11-2 run to steal the first set 26-24. In set two, the Falcons used yet another late run closing out the set by scoring the final seven points to win set two 25-20. Messiah would drop the ball in set three, as the Spartans dominated from start to finish to win the set 25-11 bringing the match to 2-1. However, a dominant defensive performance in set four kept the Spartans at bay, winning the final set 25-16 to escape York with an 3-1 win.
Up Next
The Falcons will head to Salisbury University for a tough tri-match with the Seagulls and the Marlins of Virginia Wesleyan.
How It Happened
Set one
The Spartans got off to a fast start thanks to an early 5-0 run giving York an 7-2 lead. However, the Falcons managed to rally behind points from Katie Quesenberry and Caitlin Lielbriedis to cut the deficit to 8-7. Though another Spartan run allowed them to extend their lead to 15-9. The Spartans continued to keep their foot on the gas holding Messiah at arm's length, leading 18-11. But the Falcons were not willing to roll over, a couple of York errors and kills from Julia Bowen. Sarah Hart, and Cassidy Dell gave Messiah life, cutting the deficit to 22-19. Following a York timeout, Messiah would go on to score seven of the last nine points to win the set 26-24.
Set Two
After an exciting first set, both teams began set two exchanging points early on, but the Spartans clinged to an 10-7 lead. Makenzie Adams and Emma Swartz kept Messiah in the set tying it up at 10-10. Over the next stretch of points, York would go on to score five of the next six holding an 15-11 lead. The Spartans lead would grow to as large as 18-13, but the Falcons responded well out of a timeout. Quesenberry and Cynthia Boller picked up the scoring for Messiah cutting the deficit to 18-17. York would break up the run bringing the score to 20-18, but Messiah closed out the set scoring the final seven points to win the set 25-20.
Set Three
The third set was not kind to the Falcons. The Spartans would grab an early lead and never surrender it. Hart, Quesenberry, and Dell did the scoring for Messiah, but the Falcons still trailed 10-5 early on. From that point York continued its offensive onslaught, extending their lead to 20-8. Messiah scored some points late, but it was not enough to mount a comeback as the Spartans took set three 25-11.
Set Four
Both teams opened the fourth set with a sense of urgency. As both teams exchanged points Aunyka Uresti, Dell, and Bowen gave the Falcons an 10-8 lead. As the matched continued Messiah held on to a four-point lead through the midway mark of the set leading 15-11. A Bowen kill and two Spartan attack errors later the Falcons forced a Spartan timeout leading 18-11. However, a couple of York service aces cut the Messiah lead to 18-14. But it was not enough to stop the Falcon offense, as Messiah scored seven of the final nine to win the set 25-16.
Stats
Makenzie Adams led the team with 13 kills while adding an additional 10 digs. Cassidy Dell finished with a team high 19 assists, while teammate Emma Swartz picked up 12 of her own. Caitlin Lielbriedis rounded out the leaderboard with 13 digs on the night.
What's Up Next
The Falcons will travel to Salisbury University for a tri-match with the Seagulls and Marlins of Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday Oct. 26th.
