BRADFORD, Pa. – The Pitt-Bradford volleyball team suffered back-to-back defeats on Senior Day by falling to the La Roche Redhawks and the Wells Express, 3-2.
Pitt-Bradford (11-22, 5-4) found a way to rally in each match, but couldn't deliver the knockout blow to earn the victory either time. The home team fell 25-16, 25-20, 20-25, 20-25 and 11-15 in the first game, before suffering a similar fate in game two, 12-25, 14-25, 25-23, 25-19 and 13-15.
The Lady Panthers opened the match with La Roche (17-17, 5-4) by jumping out to a 2-0 lead. All the momentum appeared to be on Pitt-Bradford's side of the court when a quick start by the Redhawks to in the third set saw the momentum shift.
From that point forward, everything went the way of La Roche. As the teams opened the fifth set, Pitt-Bradford kept it tight, before falling by four points in the end.
Three Panthers finished with double digit kills as scoring points never seemed to be the issue. Senior Brittany Cumberland, playing in her final regular season matches at the KOA Arena, started her day off with a triple-double. Cumberland totaled 11 kills, 15 assists and 17 digs.
Sophomore Brittany Watts and senior Taylor McMillen each notched 14 kills. Watts also racked up three digs and six total blocks from her frontline position. McMillen added four digs as well.
Senior Peyton Kauffman tallied 18 assists from her setter position and three digs to finish a strong match. Defensively, sophomore Kelsey Repke (23), junior Jenessa Ceprish (26) and freshman Haley Vinelli (22) each had solid outings with 20+ digs. Ceprish added three kills, while Vinelli added one kill and one assist.
In game two, Wells (23-10, 10-2) took a 2-0 lead only to have the Panthers storm back by stealing the following two sets. In the final set, Pitt-Bradford ran out of gas and the Express grabbed a 15-13 victory.
McMillen's 15 digs and Cumberland's 19 assists guided the Panthers back into the match with Wells. McMillen tacked on two assists and one dig, while Cumberland added nine kills and nine digs. She finished one kill and one dig shy of back-to-back triple-doubles.
Kauffman registered another strong performance with 15 assists and four digs. Repke finished with 20 digs, and Vinelli had five kills and 13 digs. Watts added four blocks, as did sophomore Kaitlin McCann.
"Today was not the day we were hoping for," said head coach Tina Phillips. "We had two tough losses. I was pleased with the way we fought back in the match with Wells. It's a new season starting on Monday as we prepare for the AMCC Tournament."
Despite today's defeats, Pitt-Bradford will enter the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Tournament as the No. 4 seed. The Lady Panthers will host No. 5 Penn State Behrend at the KOA Arena in the first round on Wednesday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m.
