Latrobe, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford Volleyball team got back to competition on Friday evening with two games at the Bearcat Challenge, hosted by Saint Vincent. They fell in straight sets to Hiram in their opener, and then despite a furious comeback, lost to the hosts in the nightcap 3 sets to 2.

Game One:

With a large number of players competing at the collegiate level for the first time, the Panthers got off to a slow start as they lost the first match of the season to Hiram 3 games to 0. The Panthers lost the opening set 25-10, battled to a 25-21 loss in set two, and were swept with a 25-8 final set.

• The Terriers jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead in game one using three attack errors and two service aces to build the lead. The Panthers struggled to build any momentum to chip into the lead throughout the set as they never got closer than 3 points and saw the terriers finish the set on a 17-5 run.
• Pitt-Bradford looked more comfortable in the second set as despite losing the first two points, were able to build a small lead. They used two blocks and a kill from Kaitlyn Sexton, as well as an Emily Cleveland Kill to go ahead 4-2.
• The Terriers were able to quickly erase that lead and slowly build a seven-point lead of their own at 17-10. The Panthers battled back, however, using an 8-2 run to cut the lead to only one point. Emily Cleveland started the run with a Kill and newcomers Taylor King and Olivia Reese each had consecutive kills to put the Panthers down 3. Stephanie Carson forced the Terriers into a timeout when back-to-back service aces got the Panthers within a point.
• Unfortunately, the Panthers lost momentum following the time out, as Hiram finished the set on a 5-3 run to take a 2 set lead.
• In the final set, the Terriers once again jumped ahead starting the action with an 18-4 run, putting the game to rest.
• Senior Emily Cleveland led the way for the Panthers, tallying 7 kills on 21 swings. She also had 4 digs.
• Tabitha Walker collected 14 assists while adding 3 digs and 2 kills.
• Stephanie Carson had 15 digs and two service aces.

Game 2

The Panthers got off to another slow start in the second game of the night, dropping the opening set 25-12 and the second 25-21, however, they were able to battle back to win sets 3 and 4 to force a decisive 5^th set. In the final set the Panthers were unable to hold a lead at 10-9, and eventually fell 15-12.

• Set one saw the Panthers face a large early deficit again, quickly falling behind 14-3.  They were able to string together a three-point streak near the end of the set, but could not make up the early deficit.
• The second set saw the Panthers jump out to a lead. Cleveland and Sexton tallied 3 kills apiece as they pushed the lead to 7-2. The teams battled back and forth throughout the set as the Bearcats were able to erase the lead and tie the set at 15. After sharing 10 points, the hosts scored 5 of the final 6 to lock up the 2 set lead.
• The middle set started off well for the Panthers as they methodically build a four-point lead. After back-to-back Cleveland kills put the Panthers up 19-13, the Bearcats rallied to even things up at 21.
• The teams traded points, allowing St. Vincent to grab a 25-24 lead, but the Panthers kept the match going by ending the set with three straight. Olivia Reese put down a kill to tie the set at 25 and Sexton followed that with a kill of her own. Finally, a St. Vincent attack error ended the set.
• With momentum on their side, the Panthers quickly scored the first four points of the 4^th set. The Bearcats slowly chipped away at the lead to tie proceedings at 9, but a 7 to 3 run saw the Panthers recover their original lead. Pitt-Bradford was able to maintain this lead throughout the remainder of the set to force the deciding 5^th.
• The final set was a back-and-forth affair. Neither team was able to gain an advantage until a late St. Vincent timeout preceded a quick 5-0 run to put the match away.
• Emily Cleveland led the way for the Panthers yet again, racking up 21 kills on 53 attempts.
• Kaitlyn Sexton also had an extremely effective match in the middle. She finished the match with 13 kills on 31 swings, good for a .387 hitting percentage. She also had 1.5 blocks.
• Tabitha Walker had a strong match setting up her teammates. She tallied 43 assists in the match, and even chipped in on defense, picking up 15 digs.
• Kayla Maslowski led the way defensively with 19 digs. She also had 3 assists and 2 service aces.
• Olivia Reese, Dylan Amic, and Eve Brink also collected double-digit digs in the match.

The opening day losses put the Panthers at 0-2 on the season. They will get right back to work tomorrow, as they will play two more games in Latrobe. They take on Waynesburg at 11:00 a.m. and follow that up with a match against Westminster at 3:00 p.m.