INDIANA, Pa. - The 2021 season had a positive start for IUP women's volleyball and new coach Julie Torbett, as the Crimson Hawks defeated visiting Davis & Elkins in four sets at the Kovalchick Complex Thursday night. 

It marked the first official victory for Torbett, who was hired in the summer of 2020 before the pandemic forced the cancellation of the season. 

She watched as her Hawks got off to a slow start with a 25-19 opening set loss before rebounding with wins of 25-22, 27-25 and 25-15 to clinch victory.

Junior Nicole Peterson led the offensive effort with 15 kills. Classmate Caroline Walsh added 10 and sophomore Ali St. Rose had seven in her collegiate debut. Walsh had the most consistent hitting night with a .750 percentage on 12 total attacks. Setters Leah Henderson and Hannah Simmons finished with 27 and 14 assists, respectively. 

Defensively, sophomore Bailey Flowerdew had 14 digs while senior Kylie Osborn totaled four blocks. 

The turning point in the match came in the pivotal third set, as Flowerdew served the Crimson Hawks into eight straight points to take a 20-16 lead. The Senators fought back to take a 25-24 lead, but IUP gained control of the match with three straight kills by Grace Mangapora, St. Rose and Peterson. 

It was the first match of a busy weekend for the Crimson Hawks, who host the IUP Invitational Friday and Saturday.

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