CANTON, Ohio – The Bloomsburg volleyball team capped off a successful showing at the Hall of Fame City Challenge by picking up wins against Malone and Slippery Rock on Saturday.
 
Six Huskies tabbed double-digit kills in the Huskies' twin bill as Emily Gustie (Crofton, Md./Crofton) led the way with 31 across nine sets. Gustie tied her career-high in the nightcap, posting a match-leading 19 kills. Katie Kuehl (Aston, Pa./Archmere Academy (Del.)) recorded 23 kills on the day while Pryor posted 20. Other Huskies in the double digits include Sophie Wales (Port Matilda, Pa./State College) (14), Marlee Johnson (Newville, Pa./Big Spring) (12) and Lydia Worthing (Tyrone, Pa./Bellwood Antis) (12). The maroon and gold notched 112 kills on the day.
 
Game 1 – Bloomsburg 3, Malone 1 (17-25, 25-13, 25-18, 25-16)
 
After Erin Clark (Gilbert, Ariz./Gilbert) opened the game with an ace, Bloomsburg (5-3) then found itself down 4-3 early in the set. Malone (1-7) took hold of the momentum as they jumped to a 10-3 led on a six-point run. After a short back-and-forth exchange, the maroon and gold closed the gap with five-straight points as Clark notched two aces in the process. Bloomsburg was unable to fully close the gap, dropping the first set 25-17.
 
The Huskies got off to a strong start in the second set, as Allison Saalfrank (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge) recorded back-to-back aces in an early 4-1 run. The Pioneers closed the gap slightly before Johnson and Gustie extend the Huskies lead to 8-4. Bloomsburg kept Malone at bay before notching eight-straight points to a take a 21-9 lead. The run saw Saalfrank record three straight aces. Bloomsburg closed out the set 25-13.
 
Bloomsburg got off to a similar start in the third set, as Gustie recorded two aces and a kill to take a 4-1 lead. A combination of kills from the maroon and gold and errors from the Pioneers pushed the Huskies' advantage to 12-4. Malone turned the momentum around with a 9-2 run to pull within one. Bloomsburg surged ahead yet again, using a 7-2 run to take a 21-15 lead. Wales later secured a 25-18 set victory with a kill.
 
The Huskies yet again jumped out to a 4-1 lead before Malone pushed the score to a 7-6 lead. Johnson and Gustie notched kills that set the stage for a 4-0 run to give Bloomsburg a 16-9 lead. After a back-and-forth exchange, Bloomsburg closed out the match with a 5-1 run.
 
Gustie lead the Huskies in kills with 12 while Saalfrank notched a team-high six aces. Clark finished the game with 23 assists and four aces. Jessica Rimbo (Lemont, Ill./Lemont) posted 19 assists.
 
Game 2 – Bloomsburg 3, Slippery Rock 2 (25-21, 25-17, 19-25, 15-25, 15-12)
 
Bloomsburg and Slippery Rock (5-3) battled in the early moments of the game before a three-point run from The Rock moved the score to 7-4. The Huskies then took a 9-8 lead on a 5-1 run that saw Gustie notch two kills. The two sides remained in lockstep until Bloomsburg surged ahead on a late five-point run. The run saw Pryor and Kuehl each recorded a pair of kills while Gustie posted an ace. Kills from Kuehl and Gustie closed out the set 25-21.
 
The second set saw the two PSAC programs continue to battle one another closely, with neither side gaining a two-point lead until SRU took a 9-7 lead. The maroon and gold responded quickly as Johnson, Gustie and Worthing each posted a kill to regain the lead. Several short runs from Bloomsburg helped extend the lead before Pryor secured the second set,25-17, with a kill.
 
After another back-and-forth opening to a set, Slippery Rock went on 6-1 run to take a 10-6 lead. Gustie then tallied three kills in a 5-2 run to make it 12-11. SRU slowly regained the lead at 18-15 before a Gustie recorded two kills in a three-point run to tie the game. The Rock grabbed the momentum late, winning the set 25-19 on the back of a 7-1 run.
 
Slippery Rock scored three in a row to open the set before Bloomsburg posted four-straight kills to take the lead. After the score moved to 6-6, The Rock capitalized on errors to take an 11-6 lead. Slippery Rock carried that momentum throughout the set, forcing a fifth set with a 25-15 win.
 
Bloomsburg found itself behind 3-1 early in the fifth. A kill from Kuehl put the Huskies within one but after SRU took a 6-3 lead, head coach Lee Anderson called a time out. The timeout proved effective as the Huskies went on a 7-1 run to take the lead, 9-7. Slippery Rock tied the game on a pair of errors before Gustie recorded her 19th kill of the contest to make it 10-9. A back-and-forth moved the score to 13-12 in favor of the Huskies. Kuehl gave the maroon and gold the serve back on a kill which set the stage for a wild rally that ended with the Huskies coming out on top and picking up the 3-2 win.
 
Gustie nearly posted a 20-20 double-double as she finished with 19 kills and 20 digs. Kuehl recorded 14 kills while Pryor finished closely behind with 13. Clark tallied 35 assists with Rimbo ending the game with 16.
 
Bloomsburg is back in action on Friday, September 19 as they take on Glenville State at the Lock Haven Invitational at 4 p.m.