VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Kutztown University women's volleyball team dropped its first two matches of the 2017 campaign at the Elizabeth City State Tournament in Virginia Beach, Va. on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Bears were bested by Mount Olive in straight sets (22-25,19-25,24-26) to open the weekend and then suffered a four-set defeat to Alaska Fairbanks (17-25,20-25,25-21,25-22) to conclude day one.
Versus UMO, Kutztown out-blocked the Trojans 7-0, but registered nine less kills and was outhit .253 to .205 in three sets. Although the Golden Bears were swept in the match, each frame was competitive to the finish with Kutztown losing by a combined total of just eight points.
Individually, KU was led by the attacking duo of
Brittney Moyer (Orwigsburg, Pa./Blue Mountain (Lock Haven)) and
Alli Henderson (Boalsburg, Pa./State College Area), whom combined for 13 kills in three sets, swinging at a .345 clip. The setting combination of
Madisyn Kleinfelter (Jonestown, Pa./Northern Lebanon) and
Abbey James (York, Pa./West York Area) paced the Golden Bear offense, dishing out a total of 19 assists.
Defensively,
Sydney Wilson (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) anchored the Kutztown backline to the tune of seven digs, adding two service aces and four assists from her libero position.
Match two against Alaska Fairbanks saw the Golden Bears post their first set win of the 2017 season, taking the third set, 25-21. Despite the third-set victory, the 2-1 deficit proved to be too much for KU to overcome, as UA-F finished off the match with a 25-22 win in the fourth set, taking the match 3-1.
Both teams displayed their offensive firepower in the match, as Kutztown hit .317 with 63 kills and Alaska-Fairbanks hit .333 with 49 kills in four sets.
Moyer led the KU offense with 20 kills, swinging at a blistering .390 clip, and was supported in double-digit kills by
Jessica Howe (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg Area), who racked up 12 kills of her own.
Kleinfelter and James combined for 46 assists in defeat, with Wilson and Moyer leading the defensive effort with 20 and 11 respectively.
With the two setbacks, KU falls to 0-2 to begin the 2017 season.
The Golden Bears will take back to the hardwood tomorrow, Sunday Sept. 3, for their final two matches of the weekend, facing off with Converse College at noon before taking on host-Elizabeth City State at 3 p.m.
