WILMINGTON, Pa. — Penn College suffered two losses on Saturday at the Grove City/Westminster Invitational. The Wildcats fell to Saint Vincent 3-0 (16-25, 15-25, 21-25) and dropped a 3-0 decision to Westminster (16-25, 13-25, 10-25). The Wildcats are now 0-13 overall.
Against the Bearcats, Penn College was held to 13 kills and a -.065 hitting percentage, while Saint Vincent finished with 31 kills and a .097 percentage.
Penn College opened the first set strong with four consecutive points on
Taryn Smith's serve, which included two aces. However, Saint Vincent quickly fought back to tie the game at 7-7. A kill from
Lilly Stockum put the Wildcats ahead 8-7, but Saint Vincent went on a five-point run, leading to a 25-16 set loss for PCT.
The second set saw the Wildcats fall behind early, with Saint Vincent scoring the first seven points. Despite a late rally that included a block from
Sam Prisco and a shared block from
Kendall Shade and
Kiera Clarkson, Penn College dropped the set 25-15.
In the third set, the Wildcats made a notable push, scoring four straight points on Smith's serve to cut a 21-14 deficit to 21-18. Maass added two late kills, but Saint Vincent closed the match with a 25-21 victory.
Maass led the Wildcats with six kills and 11 digs, hitting .250 and adding one ace. Smith contributed three service aces, five assists, and seven digs. Prisco recorded three blocks, including two solo blocks, alongside one kill.
Eleana Falkner collected 10 digs and served one ace.
In their second match of the day, the Wildcats totaled 16 kills while Westminster finished with 36 kills and a .272 hitting percentage.
The first set was competitive, as the Wildcats were within 15-12 after kills by
Lilly Stockum and
Sam Prisco. However, Westminster (PA) responded with six straight points, including two service aces from Brooke Gecina, closing out the set 25-16.
The second set saw PCT briefly lead 4-2, but Westminster (PA) quickly regained control with seven consecutive points, ultimately winning the set 25-13 despite kills from
Avani Rainier, Maass, and
Gabby McKenzie.
In the third set, the Wildcats tied at 2-2 after a kill from Maass, but Westminster (PA) pulled ahead 10-4 and continued to widen the gap. Kills from Stockum, Rainier, and
Kiera Clarkson, along with a late block by Clarkson and Maass, could not prevent a 25-10 set loss.
Maass scored a team-high six kills and seven points, adding six digs and two block assists. McKenzie recorded a team-high seven assists, one service ace, and three digs.
Eleana Falkner collected a team-best eight digs, while Rainier added four kills and two digs.
Up next: The Wildcats will travel to play Elmira College on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at 6 p.m.
