VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Plymouth State University women's volleyball team ran into tough competition in the season opening Virginia Wesleyan Tournament on Friday evening, falling to Westminster College (Mo.) in a five-set battle before succumbing to the host Marlins, 0-3 (12-25, 22-25, 13-25).
Westminster rallied from an 0-2 deficit to outlast the Panthers (25-23, 25-23, 11-25, 21-25, 5-15) in the opener. Plymouth State's offense was clicking in the first two sets, totaling 32 kills with a .263 attack percentage, but Westminster tightened up defensively to control set three. PSU nearly rallied from a large deficit in the fourth set, but the Blue Jays held on to force the decisive set, then used a nine-point run to coast to the fifth set win.
Against Virginia Wesleyan, the Panthers trailed by just one, 13-12, midway through the opening set but the Marlins followed with 12-straight points for the 25-12 victory. PSU used a late run in the second set to knot the score at 21-21, but the Marlins used a 4-1 spurt to secure the second set, then cruised in the third set to close out the match.
Plymouth State starts the season at 0-2, while both Westminster and Virginia Wesleyan ended the day with 2-0 records.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 2, Westminster 3
- Plymouth State 0, Virginia Wesleyan 3
- Plymouth State (0-2)
- Westminster (2-0)
- Virginia Wesleyan (2-0)
How it Happened (Westminster):
- The Panthers got out to a good start as graduate student Ava Duymazlar (Center Harbor, N.H.) ripped an ace to build a 17-10 lead. Westminster pulled even at 23-23, but a PSU block and service ace from freshman Alice Borriello Diaz (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico) secured the 25-23 win.
- Westminster took a 16-10 advantage in set two, but freshman Fiona Bailey (Wrentham, Mass.) notched back-to-back kills to help knot the score at 19-19. Borriello Diaz pounded a pair of kills for a 23-20 lead and PSU was able to keep the Blue Jays at arm's length for another 25-23 victory.
- Westminster rebounded in set three, riding a 14-2 run to build an insurmountable lead on the way to a 25-11 win to extend the match.
- Set four stayed neck-and-neck through the early stages, but Westminster slowly pulled away to take a 23-15 lead. Plymouth State clawed back during a 6-1 surge to make it 24-21, before a Westminster kill accounted for the 25-21 final.
- After trading points to start the deciding set, the Blue Jays scored nine straight points to take a 13-4 lead, and PSU was unable to recover.
By the Numbers (Westminster):
- Graduate student Ella Koelb (Auburn, N.H.) was impressive in her PSU debut, posting a match-high 17 kills and 16 assists.
- Sophomore Danielle Emerson (Biddeford, Maine) also posted a double-double with 22 assists and 10 digs, while Duymazlar led the team with 12 digs.
- Borriello Diaz stuffed the stat sheet with nine kills, five aces and eight digs.
- Plymouth State had 12 aces in the match.
- This was the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
How it Happened (Virginia Wesleyan):
- Things remained tight through the first half of the opening set. A Marlins' attack error allowed PSU to pull within one, 13-12, but the hosts took over from there, registering blocks on four of the next five rallies to force a timeout. Plymouth State was unable to slow the momentum, though, as Virginia Wesleyan scored the final six points out of the break for a 25-12 win.
- Emerson dropped a kill to spark a three-point run as the Panthers trailed by just two, 13-11, midway through set two. Virginia Wesleyan pulled away, extending the lead to 21-15 to force a timeout, but PSU rallied out of the break as Duymazlar served five straight points to tie the game at 21-21. The Marlins regrouped, though, closing the set with four of the final five points for a 25-22 victory.
- Virginia Wesleyan jumped out to an 8-3 lead in set three, then never looked back. The Marlins scored in bunches the rest of the way, completing the sweep with a 25-13 win.
By the Numbers (Virginia Wesleyan):
- Borriello Diaz posted a team-high five kills and added two aces and six digs.
- Emerson finished with seven assists and four kills, while Koelb added eight assists, four kills and four digs.
- Duymazlar led the defense with seven digs.
- Virginia Wesleyan improves to 2-0 in the all-time series.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State wraps up the tournament with a pair of contests on Saturday (Aug. 30). The Panthers face Randolph (Va.) at 10:00 a.m., before closing out the weekend against Marymount (Va.) at noon.
– 30 –
