Edinboro, Pa. - The Edinboro University volleyball team was victorious in four sets (25-20, 28-30, 25-22, 25-10) over Pitt Johnstown, in a PSAC West match up on Friday night at the Sports Center in Johnstown, PA. With the win the Fighting Scots improved to (18-3) overall and (10-1) in the PSAC West. The Mountain Cats fall to (12-8) overall and (5-6) in conference play.
On the offensive attack for Edinboro, four Fighting Scots finished with double digit kills junior Bella Burrelli and sophomore Natalie Pallone led the way, with both of them posting 13 kills each
Senior Sally Sterkel contributed to the attack by recording 11 kills, while freshman Michaella Cloonan recorded 10 kills with an efficient .563 hitting percentage
In the assists department senior Alicia Eldredge continued to impact the Scots offense, Eldredge posted a team-high 44 assists
On the defensive side Edinboro had success in slowing down the Pitt Johnstown offensive attack, the Mountain Cats were held to a .135 hitting percentage
In the digs department freshman Carly Pry paced the Scots with 29 digs, Burrelli contributed 15, and Eldredge added 14 of her own
Edinboro was dominate up front on the net, the Scots recorded 16 blocks, compared to Pitt Johnstown's four
Sterkel and Cloonan led the way for Edinboro with seven blocks each, for Sterkel the seven blocks is a season-high, Pallone also contributed four blocks of her own
In the opening set of the match Edinboro made the first strike, and won the set 25-20. The Scots came out and gained an early lead in the first set by going up 7-1 off Burrelli and Pry's service. Later in the set, back-to-back kills by Sterkel and Burrelli would help Edinboro increase the lead to 10-4. Edinboro's held Pitt Johnstown to a hitting percentage of .040 in the opening set. The final point of the set came from a kill by Pallone, Edinboro won the first set 25-20.
In the second set Pitt Johnstown bounced back and won the set 28-30. Early in the set Edinboro was in attack mode, the Scots recorded four-straight kills by Sterkel, Cloonan, and, Pallone to go up 7-5. The Mountain Cats would respond with a run of their own. Later in the set Edinboro scored three-straight off junior Jessie Michel's service to tie it up at 12-12. The offensive attack for both teams were effective in the second set, Edinboro and Pitt Johnstown each hit at a .236 percentage. Ultimately the Mountain Cats were able to score the last three points of the set. With a set that consisted of 17 ties and seven lead changes, Pitt Johnstown won the second set in a close one, 28-30.
In the third set Edinboro would regain the momentum and win the set 25-22. Early in the set the two teams battled back and forth trading points. Later in the set Pitt Johnstown scored three-straight points to go up 19-15 on Edinboro. In the third set Edinboro's attack produced 13 kills at a .250 hitting percentage. Late in the set, the Mountain Cats were up 22-16, until Edinboro stormed back. The Scots finished the set out by scoring an impressive nine-straight points. The dominant run produced kills by Michel, Sterkel, and Pallone as well as an ace by Pry. Edinboro won the third set 25-22.
In the fourth and final set Edinboro remained dominant and closed out the set 25-10, to secure the victory. In the beginning of the set Pitt Johnstown jumped out to an early lead of 6-3. From that point on Edinboro gained full control of the momentum. Edinboro would respond with an 8-1 run off junior Bethany Miller and Michel's service, which put them ahead 11-7. During the run Sterkel, Eldredge, and Burrelli all recorded kills and Miller added an ace. After a point by Pitt Johnstown ended the run, the Scots proceeded to score another eight-straight points. This run was led by Eldredge's service, and the Scots increased their lead to 19-8. In the final set Edinboro posted a .440 hitting percentage, which was the most efficient of the evening. Edinboro would score the final two points of the set to win the match 25-10.
Edinboro will be back in action on Saturday, Oct. 30, when they travel on the road to match up against Indiana University of Pennsylvania at 7 p.m.
