Volleyball Rebounds to Beat Valparaiso in Five Sets

by YSU

Sunday, Nov 10, 2013 4:13 pm

The Youngstown State volleyball team showed its mettle on Saturday evening by defeating Valparaiso in five sets, 25-18, 18-25, 25-21, 16-25, 15-11, at the ARC.

The Penguins, coming off a disappointing loss on Friday at UIC, rebounded strongly to beat the Crusaders for the first time since 2007.

Alexis Egler had 17 kills and 22 digs while Nichele Johnson registered 12 kills for YSU, which improves to 15-12 overall and 7-5 in Horizon League play. The Penguins also had 13 blocks as a team with Jenna Cavanaugh leading the way with seven. Casey' D'Ambrose finished with 38 assists.

Sarah Dooms had 13 kills to lead Valparaiso, which dropped to 23-6 overall and 9-3 in conference play.

Youngstown State trailed 16-14 in the opening set before scoring seven straight points to go up 21-16. Egler had two kills, and Aly Ryan and Lauren Thompson combined for two blocks during the run. YSU did not allow the Crusaders to get closer than three the rest of the set.

Valpo went on a 9-2 run midway through the second set to pull away for the 25-18 win. The Penguins scored five straight points in the third set to go up 15-12, and they fought off the Crusaders to win 25-21.  One of Jackie Carlisle's eight kills gave the Penguins a side out at 23-21, and Cavanaugh blocked Ellen Vanden Berg on set point.

The fourth set was tied at 13-13 when Valpo closed it out with a 12-3 run. The Penguins then stormed out of the gate in the fifth set by scoring the first five points, and Valpo never caught them. Johnson and Cavanaugh combined four of the five points during that opening run. Valpo got within one at 8-7 following a 4-1 run, but YSU answered with its own 4-1 run to go up 12-8 on a Carlisle kill. Johnson's kill gave the Penguins a 13-9 lead, and she combined with Cavanaugh for the third time in the set to give the Penguins match point. Egler's 17th kill of the night finished the match.

Youngstown State will return home for the final two matches of the regular season this weekend against Milwaukee and Green Bay. The Penguins will host the Panthers on Friday at 7 p.m. and the Phoenix on Saturday at 6 p.m. YSU's seven seniors will be honored on Saturday in what will be their final match at Beeghly Center.

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