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BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University women's volleyball team suffered its third consecutive loss on Friday night as the Huskies fell to visiting Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) in straight sets at the Nelson Field House. IUP came from behind to take the first two sets, 25-22 and 27-25, before completing the sweep with a 25-16 victory in the third. Bloomsburg dropped to 4-8 overall and 0-3 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Central Division while the Crimson Hawks improved to 5-11 overall and 1-2 in the PSAC Southwest Division.

Redshirt senior Sarah Gomish (Ebensburg, Pa./Bishop Carroll Catholic) posted a double-double with 13 kills and 12 digs to lead the Huskies in both categories. Freshman Autumn Altland (East Berlin, Pa./Delone Catholic) finished with nine kills while freshman Grace Giza (Plymouth, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) was next on the team with four. Freshman Emma Van Arsdale (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) led the way with 24 assists and sophomore Alyssa Cianciulli (Royersford, Pa./Pope John Paul II) joined Gomish in double figures in digs as she finished with 11. Madi Burns paced the Crimson Hawks with 11 kills while Jess Marut, who recorded her 2,000th career dig during the match, finished with 18 digs to lead both teams in that department.

The Huskies jumped out quickly in the opening set as the hosts took a 4-0 with kills coming from Altland, freshman Mia Nicholes (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin), and Gomish during the stretch. Bloomsburg continued to add to the advantage as the margin got as high as 10-4 before the Crimson Hawks started chipping away. IUP rattled off four consecutive points to cut the lead to 10-8 before Giza stopped the bleeding with a kill to push the lead back to three. Bloomsburg extended the lead back to four, 14-10, before the turning point of the set when the Crimson Hawks rattled off seven consecutive points to take a 17-14 margin. During the run, the Huskies hurt themselves with three hitting errors, a ball handling error, and a receiving error on an ace from Liv Burns. But, Bloomsburg battled back to score the next three points, tying the set at 17-17. Gomish had a pair of kills followed by a single kill from freshman Alora Conrad (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) which resulted in the points. IUP, however, responded with seven of the next nine points to take a 24-19 lead before Altland posted three consecutive kills to cut the lead to 24-22. Following an IUP timeout, the Crimson Hawks blocked an attack by the Huskies to finish off the set.

Bloomsburg again started fast in the second set as the Huskies built up a 9-3 advantage early. During the start, the Huskies had kills from Nicholes, Altland, and Van Arsdale while getting an ace from Cianciulli. Bloomsburg kept the lead intact as it took a 16-11 advantage before IUP was forced to take a timeout. The breather paid off for the Crimson Hawks as the visitors scored eight consecutive points to erase a five-point deficit and turn it into a three-point lead at 19-16. Bloomsburg battled back to tie the set at 19-19 on a kill from Altland and a pair of aces from freshman Meghan Gehr (Parkesburg, Pa./Garden Spot). The teams went back-and-forth from that point with each team thwarting a set point opportunity before the Crimson Hawks finished off the Huskies, 27-25, on a kill from Madi Burns and a Bloomsburg hitting error.

The visitors led 3-0 in the third set before the Huskies went on a 9-1 run to take a 9-4 advantage. Giza had a pair of kills and Gomish added another while Van Arsdale posted back-to-back aces to provide the Bloomsburg offense during the run. The Huskies maintained a five-point lead, 11-6, after kills from Gomish and Altland before the Crimson Hawks went on a tear. Bloomsburg could muster only five points the rest of the way as IUP outscored the Huskies, 19-5, to close out the set and the match.

Bloomsburg hit just .034 on the night with Altland posting the team's best percentage at .250. IUP, meanwhile, hit .192 for the match which included a high of .235 in the third set. A large difference also came at the net as IUP totaled nine blocks on the night - four from Jessica Ignace - while the Huskies did not record a single block.

The Huskies will have little time to regroup as they return to the court on Saturday afternoon, September 22, to host Clarion University at the Nelson Field House. Start time is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.

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