LATROBE, Pa. (Oct. 21) – The Saint Vincent women's volleyball team fell to Chatham University in straight sets (25-19, 25-16, 25-10) in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup on Wednesday evening inside the Robert S. Carey Center.
With the loss, the Bearcats dropped to 4-12 overall and 2-5 in PAC play, while Chatham improved to 11-6 overall and 6-2 in conference action.
Meegan Williams led the Saint Vincent offensive attack with a team-high 11 kills, while adding six digs, one service ace and one block assist. Aubrey Siwula and Elliot Hardy followed with three kills apiece.
Madie Eagler dished out a team-high seven assists, while Preslee Horchak followed with five assists and a team-high nine digs. Defensively, Williams added six digs, while Sabrina George, Maria Goldstein and Brenna McCracken each recorded five. Maria Piraino led the Bearcats with three service aces, while Ashlynn Schutz contributed two block assists.
In the opening set, Saint Vincent jumped out to an early 8-3 advantage, highlighted by four kills from Williams. Chatham battled back to even the score at 10-10 before the two teams traded points throughout the middle stages of the set. The Bearcats held a 16-14 lead before the Cougars responded, eventually pulling ahead 19-18. Chatham scored six of the final seven points to take the opening set, 25-19.
Saint Vincent came out strong in the second set, taking an early 4-1 lead before Chatham battled back to even the score at 5-5. The teams continued to trade points before the Cougars used a 4-0 run to take an 11-7 advantage. The Bearcats cut the deficit to two at 13-11, but Chatham pulled away late, taking the second set by a 25-16 score.
In the third set, the Bearcats once again got off to a strong start, jumping out to an early 5-2 lead. Chatham responded to even the score at 5-5 before the two teams battled to a 7-7 tie. The Cougars then took control of the set, pulling away to earn a 25-10 victory and complete the three-set sweep.
As a team, Saint Vincent totaled 19 kills, 18 assists, 42 digs and five service aces, hitting .019 for the match. Chatham finished with 41 kills, 35 assists, 58 digs and eight service aces, hitting .250.
Becca Gesner paced the Chatham offensive attack with a match-high 12 kills, hitting .522, while Zoie Bateman followed with 11 kills. Kate Giannetta dished out a match-high 18 assists, while Delaney Schwind added 13. Kelly Dougherty led the Cougars defensively with 17 digs, while Mackenzie Moore recorded four service aces.
The Bearcats will look to bounce back in their next PAC matchup when they travel to New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, to take on Westminster College on Saturday, October 24. The match is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.
