CALIFORNIA, PA -- The Lake Erie women's volleyball team competed in the PennWest-California Invitational over the weekend, losing the first of three games to start off the season. The Storm took on the Bloomsburg University Huskies in a competitive five set match, with the Huskies taking the win.
The Storm started off their season strong against the Huskies, taking the first set in a close 25-22 win. The Huskies took the next two sets in response, with close scores of 25-23 and 25-21. The Storm battled it out to win the fourth set 25-23, forcing a fifth and final set. The Storm fought hard, yet the Huskies took the match winning set 15-13. Sophomore setter Simone Schurr recorded 31 assists throughout the five set match and junior Alexandra Matthews put down 14 kills. Senior libero Kaylee Hiser recorded 41 digs, playing strong defense in the back.
The teams were neck-and-neck starting off, with a tied score at 10-10 before the Storm took over. A pair of kills from senior outside hitter Jordan Taylor and a service ace from setter Simone Schurr gave the Storm the lead, 12-10, after a six point run from Schurr. The Huskies came back and tied it up at 18-18, before the Storm struck again. Another kill from Taylor and a Huskies' error ended the match, 25-22. Lake Erie tallied their first 13 kills of the season in set one alone, with strong offensive attacks and solid defense.
The next set stayed close within a point of two lead for each team, with Schurr racking in the assists from kills by junior outside hitter Peyton Lemmer and Alexandra Matthews. The scores were tied 16 times, as both teams fought for the match lead to break the 1-1 tie. A pair of kills from junior middle hitter Schylar Shepard could not hold off the Huskies, with the Huskies' attacker responding with kills to end the set, 25-23 Huskies.
The third set started in the Huskies favor, as they set a strong lead over the Storm, 12-6. The Storm came back and tied the set at 18-18, with kills from Lemmer and errors from the Huskies. The Huskies ended up taking the set 25-21 due to some Storm errors and a kill. However, the Storm put up a fight going into the fourth set.
The Storm and Huskies kept the fourth set close, with back and forth points. The Storm had the Huskies at a nice five point lead toward the end, at 21-16, before the Huskies came back with a four point run. The close score of 21-20 did not phase the Storm, with a kill from Matthews driving the momentum until the end. A pair of errors from the Huskies gave the Storm the fourth set win, forcing a fifth and final set.
The Storm had the Huskies at 5-2 to start, with a kill from Lemmer and a service ace from junior defensive specialist Caitlin Farkas to kick start the competition. The Huskies then went on a four point run to take the lead 6-5, with kills and some errors from LEC. The Huskies then took over, furthering the lead to a match point score of 14-9. The Storm put up a strong fight, with an error from the Huskies resulting in a service ace from Schurr and a kill from Taylor, bringing the score to 14-12 Huskies. An error from the Storm gave the Huskies the match win, 15-12.
Game 2 - California University of Pennsylvania
The Storm played the California University of Pennsylvania Vulcans for their second match of the invitational, taking the first set 25-21. The Vulcans responded with a 25-14 win over the Storm for the second set. The third set was close for the Storm, yet the Vulcans took it with a close 25-22 win. The fourth set was a 25-18 loss for the Storm, securing the match win for California (Pa.).
The Storm started off the first set with a kill from junior junior outside/middle Alexandra Matthews. The set went back and forth between the Storm and the Vulcans, before a pair of kills from junior outside Peyton Lemmer and freshman middle Jessica Ikes gave the Storm the lead, 17-15. An error from the Vulcans and two kills from Lemmer furthered their lead, before the Vulcans went on a three point run to bring the score to 21-20, Storm. Another error from the Vulcans mixed with split kills from Matthews and senior outside Jordan Taylor secured the win for LEC, 25-21.
The Storm and Vulcans continued their solid matchup play, until the Vulcans took a 17-9 lead caused by service aces on the Storm along with some kills. The Vulcans continued to tally up kills, furthering the lead to 24-14. Kills from Storm's Taylor and junior middle Katelyn McMoore put up a fight, but the Vulcans took the set 25-14 after a kill of their own.
The third set was back to close scores, until the Vulcans went on separate three point runs to lock in a lead of 13-8. A service ace from Storm's junior defensive specialist Caitlin Farkas and kills from Taylor and Lemmer put the Storm back into the game, trailing behind at 13-15 Vulcans. Another run put the Vulcans ahead 18-13, before a few service and attack errors gave the Storm some hope. The Storm went out swinging, with a pair of kills from Matthews, yet the Vulcans took the set 25-20 after some Storm errors.
The Vulcans started off with a pair of errors to give the Storm a 2-0 lead going into the fourth set. Kills from Matthews and Lemmer added to more Vulcans' errors to give LEC a 9-5 lead. The Vulcans responded with a five point run to take the lead from the Storm. The scoring went back to back and forth points for each team, until another five point run pulled the Vulcans ahead, 17-12. Another service ace from Farkas and a kill from Ickes tried to best the Vulcans, but the Vulcans had kills of their own in addition to some Storm errors to give them the match winning set, 25-18.
The Storm continues to take the first set from their competitors despite not having their full roster available, yet strive to hold onto the winning momentum. They look to their next match against the Frostburg State Bobcats (8/27).
