Panthers Beat YSU in Four Sets

by YSU

Monday, Nov 10, 2014 10:55 am

Milwaukee hit .329 as a team behind 20 kills from Julie Kolinske to hold off the Youngstown State volleyball team in four sets on Friday evening at the Klotsche Center. The set scores were 25-15, 23-25, 26-24, 25-22.

Milwaukee finished with 69 kills, 17 more than YSU, and the .329 attack percentage was the second-highest mark against the Penguins this season. The Penguins kept pace with the league leaders after the first set and hit .320 over the final three sets.

Lauren Thompson led YSU with 14 kills on a .440 attack percentage, and Lexi Egler had 12 kills and 10 digs. Shannon Watson had seven blocks as YSU held a 10-4.5 edge in blocks, and Nikki Thompson had 17 digs.

The loss drops Youngstown State to 16-11 overall and 7-5 in Horizon League play, which is fourth in the conference. Milwaukee remains tied with Oakland for the top spot in the standings at 9-2.

"The first set we were just too high error and didn't adjust very well to what Milwaukee was doing offensively," YSU head coach Mark Hardaway said. "The next three sets both sides played very aggressively and with a lot of effort. In the end, Milwaukee just made a few more plays than we did."

Milwaukee scored the final seven points of the first set to pull away for the 25-15 win, and the Panthers led 14-11 in the second set before YSU rallied. The Penguins tied the score at 14, and they did not trail after going up 16-15. A Sam Brown kill gave the Penguins a 24-21 lead, and Jessie Gerig finished off the set with a kill.

Youngstown State led 6-3 early in the third set, and it made a late charge before falling 26-24. Milwaukee led 22-18 after a Kolinske kill, but Watson had two kills and a block assist during a four-point Penguins run that tied the score. YSU knotted the score again at 23 and 24, but UWM had back-to-back kills from Myanna Ruiz and Kayla Price to finish the set.

Kolinske had five of her nine kills in the fourth set to turn a 15-12 Milwaukee deficit into a 19-17 lead. Youngstown State scored four of the next five points to go up 21-20 on an Egler kill, and Egler tied the score again at 22. Milwaukee finished the match with three straight points.

Youngstown State will play at Green Bay on Saturday at 5 p.m. Eastern.

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