LIBERTY, Mo. - The William Jewell volleyball team dropped the 2022 home opener 3-1 to Pittsburg State on Tuesday night, despite a furious fourth set rally. The Cardinals fall to 7-5 on the season heading into Great Lakes Valley Conference play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Jewell came out of the gates hot, jumping out to a 13-9 lead after a kill from Tatum Ernt. The Cardinals continued their run using three kills and a block from Bella LaPorta to extend the advantage to six. The Gorillas scored four late points from an Anna Godfredsen kill combined with a Pittsburg State error gave Jewell the first set, 25-18.
- The Gorillas returned the favor in the second set, opening up the early 5-2 lead but Jewell rallied, scoring three straight to pull within one, 14-13, midway through. A 5-0 PSU run pushed their advantage back to seven before back-to-back kills from Meg Auten ended the set 25-18.
- The third frame was a back-and-forth affair until late. Leading by one, Pittsburg State went on a 9-2 to take the lead after winning 25-17.
- The Gorillas looked as though they would run away with set four and the match, leading 14-5 in the early going, but Jewell had other plans. The Cardinals slowly chipped away two points at a time, pulling within one late. Trailing 24-22 at match point, Emma Lea Benney got a kill followed by back-to-back blocks from Ernt, Benney and Katy Garrison to put Jewell in front for the first time in the set, 25-24. Pitt State used back-to-back kills and a Cardinal error, though to rally and take the set 27-25.
KEY STATS
- LaPorta led the Cardinals with 15 kills while Godfredsen added 11, including seven in the fourth set to lead the comeback effort.
- Samantha Thompson had a double-double of 15 digs, 15 assists while Haidan Baade added 13 digs and Jordan Collard 12.
- Drew Baxter posted 22 assists.
UP NEXT
The Cardinals begin GLVC play this weekend as they travel to Southwest Baptist on Friday night before hosting Drury on Saturday. Both games can be seen live for free on the GLVC Sports Network.
