Keuka Park, N.Y. -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford volleyball team opened their 2024 season on Friday night, falling at Keuka 3 sets to 1.
The Panthers faced a tough task taking on the Wolves in their first game of three at the Keuka College Invitational, as the hosts enter the season after winning 20 games in 2023. The Panthers stuck with the Wolves early through the first two sets but fell after a few late Keuka rallies 18-25 and 21-25. Pitt-Bradford battled back and extended the match with a 25-17 win in set 3, but could not maintain the momentum in the 4th, falling 14-25 to end the match.
The hosts quickly shot out to a 4-1 lead, but the Panthers crawled back into the game, scoring four out of five of their own. Keuka rattled off 5 straight points to force the Panthers into a timeout before a service error ended the run. The Panthers were able to get back to within three points after a Jenna Louser block and a kill by Alycia Wilson, but could not cut into the deficit further, as the Wolves closed the set by scoring 8 of the final 10 points.
After allowing the Wolves to score the first two points of the second set, the Panthers rallied to score 4 of 5 points to take their first lead of the year. They tied the set at three with two errors and a Wilson kill before freshman Mia Gonzales put down a kill to give Pitt-Bradford the lead. The Panthers kept their advantage at two points until another long scoring rally saw Keuka turn a 9-7 Pitt-Bradford lead into a 5-point deficit. Wilson registered back-to-back kills to cut the lead down to two, but the hosts answered, quickly pushing their lead to 8 points at 23-15. Pitt-Bradford showed some late life in the set as following a kill by Alexah Martinez, they scored 3 straight with Gonzales at the service line. Their rally ultimately came up short, however, when Keuka finished with two side-outs.
The Panthers fell behind in the third set, allowing Keuka to take an early 5-8 lead. An Emma King kill started a rally which tie the set at 8, but the hosts responded with three of their own to restore the advantage. King put down another kill to start a rally with the Panthers down 8-11. The kill started a long run for the Panthers that saw them take the lead and extend it to 5 points. Wilson had two kills in the run, while Louser and Gonzales each added another. Alexah Martinez had two aces in the stretch. The Panthers pushed their lead to six after kills by Louser and Wilson and easily saw out the set to send the match to the fourth.
Pitt-Bradford had a promising start in the 4th set, sticking with the Wolves and even taking a 6-5 lead after a Gonzales kill. The hosts quickly took over from there, scoring 4 straight to take control of the match. From that point forward the Wolves were able to limit the Panthers from multiple-point rallies, and closed the match on a 20-8 run.
Newcomer Alycia Wilson led the Panthers with 12 kills and a .385 hitting percentage. Mia Gonzales had a strong collegiate debut, registering 11 kills, while also collecting 10 digs. Jenna Louser added 5 kills, 2 solo blocks, and an ace. Alexah Martinez dished out 21 assists, while also tallying 4 kills, 2 aces, and 6 digs. Senior Libero Kayla Maslowski led the defensive effort with 12 digs.
Pitt-Bradford's record stands at 0-1 after the opening night loss. They will be right back in action tomorrow with two more matches at the Keuka College Invitational. They will take on Fredonia at 11:00 a.m., before playing Thiel at 1:00 p.m.
