BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg volleyball team fought until the end but came up short in a five-set defeat to East Stroudsburg at Nelson Field House on Friday.
The Huskies (8-9, 1-6 PSAC East) traded sets with the Warriors (12-6, 5-1 PSAC East) leading up to a deciding fifth set. Despite Bloomsburg holding an early 4-1 advantage, East Stroudsburg flipped the script with a 6-2 stretch to shift momentum away from the Huskies.
Katie Kuehl (Aston, Pa./Archmere Academy (Del.)) led Bloomsburg on the night with 17 kills and 18.5 total points.
Sasha Moody (Abington, PA/Abington Senior) recorded another strong performance for the Huskies with 11 kills, six digs, and three block assists.
Lydia Worthing (Tyrone, Pa./Bellwood Antis) provided a spark along the front row, notching nine kills to match her career-high along with four block assists.
Defensively,
Sophie Wales (Port Matilda, Pa./State College) led all players in the match with three solo blocks in addition to two block assists.
Emily Gustie (Crofton, Md./Crofton) posted a team-high 14 digs while adding a season-high four service aces to her tally.
How It Happened:
The first set set the tone for the match, with both teams starting the night close, and the Warriors led 10-9. East Stroudsburg would begin to break away in the next run of play, growing their lead to six following a 6-1 stretch. Bloomsburg looked to make it interesting, cutting its deficit to four as the visitors reached the 20-point mark in the set. The Huskies would be unable to muster much as the opening frame wound down, as the Warriors finished on a 5-1 run to take a one-set lead.
Bloomsburg needed to shake off some of its first-set struggles and managed to do so to get out in front early to begin the second set. Worthing and Kuehl each recorded two kills as the Huskies claimed a 7-4 edge. East Stroudsburg momentarily recaptured a lead with a 4-0 run before surrendering the same amount of points on a slew of errors to once again face a trailing position. With the set tied at 14-14, Bloomsburg put itself in a strong position to tie the match off the back of a 6-1 stretch to win the race to 20 points. The Warriors got within two points in the second, but a strong close thanks to
Lena Jones (Middletown, Pa./Middletown Area) on the attack and Wales from the service line saw the match knotted up.
The third set was back-and-forth well into the frame, with 19 sideouts through the first 31 points, a period with East Stroudsburg leading, 16-15. Three consecutive service aces from the Warriors' Jadyn Orava helped change the trajectory of the set to see the visitors extend their advantage to five. Mistakes late in the third set by East Stroudsburg gave Bloomsburg new life, as the two teams approached set point tied 23-23. Orava delivered for her side as she did earlier, recording the final two kills to put the Warriors up two sets to one.
The Huskies were not dismayed by their trailing position. Instead, Bloomsburg came out motivated to take the match to five sets. The Huskies found themselves up in a commanding 15-4 position in the fourth set as a result of an 11-1 stretch. Gustie contributed to an embedded 7-0 run in that period with three consecutive service aces, while Wales was involved in all three of the team's blocks. The Huskies stood at match point at 24-10, but faced four rebuttals before getting the set point.
Bloomsburg managed to carry the momentum over from the fourth set into the fifth to take an early 4-1 lead. Moody was involved in three consecutive points for the Huskies, tallying two kills and jumping in for a block assist. East Stroudsburg not only chipped away at Bloomsburg's advantage, but soon eliminated it, utilizing a 7-2 stretch to go out in front, 8-6. The Huskies remained in touching distance, down 9-10, but Bloomsburg dropped several swing points to see the gap extend to four. Moody helped the Huskies fend off a match point to make it 11-14, but Bloomsburg could not extend the match any further as the Warriors got the clinching kill on the next point.
On the Horizon:
The Huskies are back at Nelson Field House at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, October, 10, for a PSAC meeting with Shippensburg.
