SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Kutztown University volleyball team fought back from a 19-12 first set deficit to come out on top, and then trailed for just one point the entire rest of the match, defeating Roberts Wesleyan in straight sets Saturday afternoon at Shippensburg University to finish its weekend 2-1 at the Raider Classic.
 
Scores of the match were 25-23, 25-14 and 25-11.
 
For the third straight match, junior Holly Owen (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) led the Golden Bears (2-1 overall) in kills with 14. Classmate Sydney Wilson (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty), one day after moving into seventh on the all-time KU career digs list, once again recorded double-digits in digs, finishing with 19. Abbey James (York, Pa./West York Area) contributed 18 assists and Lexi Morrow (Landisburg, Pa./West Perry) added nine, along with two aces.
 
Erin Patterson (Garnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley), Britney Hewitt (East Stroudsburg, Pa./Stroudsburg) and Haylee Holsopple (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg) were also forces at the net, ending with six kills for Patterson and five kills each for Hewitt and Holsopple. Lilly Charlton (Landenberg, Pa./Avon Grove) tallied three blocks. Alli Henderson (Boalsburg, Pa./State College) and James combined for 15 digs, with the former having eight and the latter seven.
 
Following a 1-1 tie in the opening set, the Redhawks caught fire and took a high lead of 19-12. KU would then score six of the next seven points and forced a timeout. With the score 21-18, Kutztown once again ripped off six of the ensuing seven points to go ahead 24-22 and a Henderson kill finished the comeback effort.
 
Roberts Wesleyan got the first point of set two, but would never lead from there on out. The teams were tied 7-7, but the Maroon and Gold scored eight straight and found themselves up 23-13 to win set two.
 
After two early ties, the last at 2-2, KU went on a 9-0 run and never looked back, leading by as many as 13 points (23-10) late to finish off the sweep and leave Shippensburg on a win streak.
 
Kutztown will remain on the road for its next match, at Bowie State, on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at 6 p.m.