Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU volleyball team opened a three-match homestand at the UPMC Events Center Tuesday, falling to Cleveland State, 3-1. The Colonials slipped to 7-9 (.438) overall during the 2022 campaign, including 0-4 in the Horizon League.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
In a match that featured 25 ties and 14 lead changes, the Colonials garnered a 28-26 victory in the opening set. RMU grabbed an early 3-0 lead thanks to a pair of service aces from sophomore
Ashleigh Wallin and opened up a 10-7 advantage thanks to consecutive kills from junior
Abby Ryan and freshman
Hillarie Adams. The Vikings would respond with a 12-5 run that helped Cleveland State jump in front, 20-15, but the Colonials answered. Junior middle
Emma Brown christened a 10-3 surge for the Colonials with a kill that would help tie the first set, 23-23, setting up free volleyball. During the run four different RMU student-athletes registered a kill, including two from fifth-year
Alyssa Hudak. Sophomore
Ally Christman would come up huge later, providing a pair of kills, each of which tied the set, while her service ace gave RMU a 27-26 edge. The set was clinched for the Colonials when Lydia Latimer notched an attack error.
TWO, THREE
Cleveland State found its footing in the second, jumping out a 7-2 lead and finishing with a hitting percentage of .417 in a 25-13 win to tie the match, 1-1. Laken Voss and Madalynn Butler combined for nine kills in the set in 16 attempts with just one error to bolster the Vikings. Tied, 6-6, in the third after a kill from sophomore
Abby Powers, Cleveland State (5-10 / 2-2 #HLVB) inched ahead with a spike from Madison Quirino. The lead bulged to 16-11, and after a kill from junior
Annie Monaco helped the Colonials close to within 17-16, the Vikings scored eight of the final 11 points of the set to earn a 25-19 triumph.
FREE VOLLEYBALL
The fourth saw Cleveland State and RMU reach 12 stalemates, while the lead swung between the two eight times. The largest advantage came when the Vikings grabbed a 13-9 cushion, but the Colonials found balance, scoring the next five points to grab a 14-13 edge. Three consecutive kills from Ryan tied it, 13-13, while Monaco pushed the Colonials in front with a service ace. Cleveland State would again grab a four-point advantage, 23-19, after a Latimer kill, but RMU would use a 5-1 spurt to tie it again, 24-24. Hudak began the climb with a kill, while junior
Allena Carmody knotted the score with a service ace. Quirino came back with a kill for the Vikings, who would seal the match win with a 26-24 decision on a kill from Butler.
QUOTABLE
"When we believe in ourselves and believe in what we do, that's how we create rallies," RMU head coach
Danny Doherty said. "We just have to be a little more efficient. Volleyball is truly like a chess game. (Cleveland State) were moving some pieces around that we weren't able to put up a good offense on. They really controlled us from their defensive play and had a monster block today. We didn't take advantage of a couple openings that we had. We have a great young corps and some veteran pieces, so we have to continue to show a lot of resiliency."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Of the 14 sets the Colonials have played during their Horizon League slate, exactly half have been decided by just two points. Pacing RMU Tuesday against the Vikings was Ryan, who matched a season high in kills (19) while establishing a career high in attempts (59). Four Colonials finished in double figures in digs, led by Carmody with 22, her third effort of the 2022 campaign eclipsing the 20-dig plateau. Christman recorded each of her 11 digs in the first set, Monaco also finished with 11 while freshman
Kaitlyn Brown notched a double-double thanks to 24 assists and 10 digs. RMU edged Cleveland State in service aces, 9-8, but the Vikings held a 26-8 edge in blocks.
UP NEXT
RMU will look for its first #HLVB victory of the season Friday, Sept. 30, when it hosts Purdue Fort Wayne at the UPMC Events Center with a 6:00 p.m. first serve. The Colonials conclude their homestand Saturday, Oct. 1, at 4:00 p.m. against IUPUI.
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