Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

INDIANA, PA - Morgan Cerveny (Richfield, OH/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) tallied 14 kills in a 3-1 victory over Alderson Broaddus to start the day, giving way to an all-around team effort in a 3-0 nightcap win over West Virginia Wesleyan as the IUP women's volleyball team opened PSAC/WVIAC crossover play on Friday.

Six matches were played in all on Friday, with three each coming in IUP's Kovalchick Complex and Memorial Field House. Besides IUP, Alderson Broaddus and Wesleyan, other teams on campus included Seton Hill, Gannon, Mercyhurst and Clarion.

The Crimson Hawks (9-1) fell behind against Alderson Broaddus 9-5 in the opening set before giving way to a 15-9 Battlers lead. IUP would attempt to mount a comeback by scoring five of seven points to cut its deficit to 20-13, but the Battlers closed off the set with a 25-14 win.

IUP returned the favor by getting out early 5-2 in set two, but the Battlers scored five straighto take a 7-5 lead. It was then a back-and-forth game before the Crimson Hawks rattled off four straight points of their own, with kills coming from Aubree Frye (Indiana/Indiana), Sarah Smiley (Worthington, OH/Thomas Worthington) and Cerveny, to go on top 12-10. After a timeout by the Battlers, IUP went on a 5-2 run to extend the lead to five before the Battlers their deficit to 17-16. IUP would finish the set strong, going on a 5-0 run, forcing three attack errors for the 25-20 win.

The third set would finish with another win, as it saw IUP jump out to a 7-1 lead. The Crimson Hawks would go up 12-4 and 18-10 in the set, holding off a late run by the Battlers with kills by Smiley, Cerveny, Elizabeth Sova (Myerstown, Pa. /ELCO) and Lauren Hester (State College, Pa. /State College), along with a service ace by Frye for the 25-17 victory.

Again IUP got out to leads early in the fourth set, including 4-0 and 7-2, but the Battlers rallied back to tie it at 7-7. IUP then answered with a 6-0 run to take a 13-7 advantage and would go on top 15-9 before the Battlers closed it within two at 15-13. They hung around with IUP at 18-17 but the Crimson Hawks scored three straight points for some breathing room and ultimately closed out the match with a 25-21 set four win.

Smiley finished with eight kills while Sarah Alman (Indiana/Indiana) had 38 assists and 21 digs. Ellen Fordon (Chicago, IL/Lincoln-Way East) played huge defensively with seven block assists while Kelly Barnes (Inver Grove Heights, MN/Simley) and Joie Hrapla (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Bishop Canevin) chipped in with 24 and 12 digs, respectively.

IUP got on top in the first set with Wesleyan, using a 4-0 run to take a 9-4 lead. The Crimson Hawks continued to pile it on early, scoring nine of the next 13 points, with aces coming from Hester and Sova, to take a 16-7 lead. The Bobcats then attempted to climb back into the match, putting together multiple 3-0 runs to cut the deficit to 23-18 late. IUP held off the rally, using a kill by Smiley to finish off the set 25-20.

The second set was tight early, as both teams exchanged leads. Down 6-5, IUP exploded for a 10-2 run to take a 15-8 lead, capitalizing on several mistakes by the Bobcats. Wesleyan would rally again to make it a 23-20 game, but two errors at the end gave IUP the 25-20 win.

It was Wesleyan that took an early lead in the third set, going on top 7-2 before the Crimson Hawks responded with a 7-0 run, getting a pair of aces from Frye to take a 9-7 lead and regain momentum. After the Bobcats tied it at 9-9, IUP again went on a run, this time scoring nine of the next 13 to go on top 18-13. The Crimson Hawks then held leads of 21-15 and 23-18 before a pair of emphatic kills by Sova and Hester clinched a 25-18 win for the Crimson Hawks.

Eight different players tallied at least one kill for IUP, as Alman notched 22 assists. Defensively the team had eight total blocks, while Barnes had 24 digs and Alman had 10.

The Crimson Hawks are back on the court on Saturday, playing Charleston (WV) at 1:30 p.m. in the Memorial Field House and Seton Hill at 7:00 p.m. in the Kovalchick Complex.