Volleyball seeing red (Raiders)
In a quarterfinal playoff match, #2 seed KU Volleyball (16-12, 8-11) lost a close match to #3 seed PSAC East Shippensburg (14-18, 8-11) 3-1 in Keystone Hall on Tuesday night. Ship won the match in four games with scores of 26-24, 19-25, 25-19 and 25-23. KU beat Ship the previous two times they met earlier in the season.
Ship senior Colleen Toomey started off the night with a kill to take the lead in the first game 1-0. KU stumbled throughout the game and was down 6-1 early in the contest. Ship got the majority of their points from soft tips over the net, which KU missed. Ship won on a combination of luck and missed KU opportunities to capitalize on digs to take the game. KU eventually battled back to within three and then eventually tied the game. KU took the lead on a serve from junior Lindsay Confer that hit and went over the net. KU held the lead until lack of communication took control in the form of missed digs. KU lost the match 26-24.
In the second game, looking more poised and focused, KU got ahead by taking an early 6-2 lead. Ship took offense to the KU scoring and mounted a comeback, and tied up the game at 13 apiece. Junior Jamie Celia continued her strong defensive play and saved the Golden Bears from defeat with her digs. KU rebounded and scored three straight points on kills. The Golden Bears would outscore Ship 25-19 to win the game.
In game three, KU looked unorganized and unfocused losing the game early 13-6. Throughout the game, the Golden Bears struggled with communication, as two players ran into each other going for the ball. The ball dropped and Ship was awarded a point. The miscues and bad luck would continue to plague KU throughout the match. KU took a 25-19 loss.
Game four started off in the Golden Bears’ favor with the opening Ship serve being hit into the net. KU took the momentum and made the contest 8-3. Sophomore Cali Snell kept the ball in KU’s court with several great serves. KU looked to have the game wrapped up at 18-11 with Celia making more tremendous defensive plays, diving for the ball and saving a crucial point, but Ship battled back and cut the Golden Bears’ lead to 22-21. Ship would go on to tie the game at 23 and eventually win the game 25-23 and the match 3-1, knocking KU out of the playoffs, and advancing to the semifinals. “We fought hard, had the lead and just lost it. We got stressed and fell apart,” explained Junior Catie Leahy.
“This was a pretty upsetting loss. We were hoping to make it to the next round,” explained Leahy. Leahy went on to add, “It’s upsetting to see our only senior Katie Miller go home early. We didn’t make the playoffs last year, so we got our hopes up.” When asked what the team has to do to rebound for next season, Leah said, “We’re just ready to start 6 a.m. practices and we’re ready to do it again next year.”
Celia, who played her heart out on defense, said, “Things just fell apart. They outplayed us in the last game and we’ll be back next year. We’re unfortunately losing Katie (Miller), but everyone else is coming back.”
KU looks to rebound on the disappointing first round exit and make an appearance in next season’s PSAC playoffs.
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