BALTIMORE – The William Paterson volleyball team (3-2) split a pair of matches on the final day of the Greg "Gio" Giovanazzi Memorial Tournament, defeating Penn State Altoona (1-2), 3-0, before falling, 3-0, to host No. 11 Johns Hopkins (3-0) Sept. 5.
MATCH ONE
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- WP trailed by two (21-19) late in the first set before sophomore Riley Elliott (El Dorado Hills, Calif./Oak Ridge) capped a 6-0 run to secure the 25-21 come-from-behind win.
- The Pioneers were down by five (21-16) in the second set, and once again rallied late, scoring nine unanswered points to capture the 25-21 victory.
- Back-to-back errors by the Lions pushed the WP lead to six (11-5) in the third set. WP closed things out with a 14-3 run, earning the 25-8 win.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Junior Makayda Aldrich (Robbinsdale, Minn./Brooklyn Center) had a match-high nine kills, adding three blocks.
- Elliott recorded 13 digs and seven kills.
- Junior Bella Demers (Maumee, Ohio/Maumee) totaled 20 digs and four assists.
- Freshman Sara Rogers (Dacula, Ga./Mill Creek) posted her first career double-double, finishing with 13 digs and 13 assists.
- Senior Abby Houpt (Garnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley) dished out a match-best 16 assists while adding three digs.
MATCH TWO
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- A kill by sophomore Tinashe Magura (Olympia, Wash./Olympia) late in the first set pulled WP within one (20-19), but the Blue Jays scored five consecutive points to earn the 25-19 win.
- The Pioneers trailed by one (16-15) in the second set following a kill by Elliott. However, Johns Hopkins closed out the set on a 9-3 run to secure the 25-18 victory.
- WP used a 12-5 run to even the score at 21-21 in the third set, but the Blue Jays outscored the Pioneers, 4-1, the rest of the way to claim the 25-22 win.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Elliott totaled a team-best nine kills to go with three digs.
- Demers notched 10 digs and was named to the All-Tournament Team.
- Houpt and Rogers finished with 13 and 10 assists, respectively.
UP NEXT:
- William Paterson returns to the Sports and Recreation Center Friday, Sept. 11, to host Christopher Newport at 4:00 p.m. and Centenary at 6:00 p.m.
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