ERIE, Pa. – The IUP women's volleyball team played catch up for a large chunk of the match, falling in straight sets to Wheeling on Friday afternoon in the NCAA DII Atlantic Region Quarterfinals at Gannon's Highmark Events Center.
 
Making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2017, IUP (20-9) could not battle back from some early deficits against an experienced Wheeling team. The Cardinals have been to the NCAA Atlantic Region championship game every year since 2011.
 
Lauren Valentic paced IUP with 14 kills, with Nicole Peterson adding 12 and Stefania Anagostou totaling 11. Leah Henderson dished out 40 assists and Bailey Flowerdew logged 10 digs in limited chances.
 
Allonda Watkins posted 18 kills with Tylah Yeomans posted 11 more. Melia Gorrell had 11 digs and Karly Niesen passed out 34 assists.
 
Wheeling held the advantage early, jumping ahead 6-1 and prompting an early IUP timeout. It set the tone early for Wheeling, which hit .600 as a team in the early flurry before IUP started chipping away. Kills from four different Hawks brought their deficit to within 11-5. In the middle, Valentic rocketed down a kill as IUP trailed 14-8.
 
Wheeling remained in front despite IUP closing the gap in the opening set. Consecutive points for the Cardinals erased kills from Henderson and Valentic with Wheeling leading 18-9. On the outside, Anagnostou placed down a pair of kills amid another Wheeling surge. The Cardinals capped the opening set with a 25-12 victory.
 
Three Crimson Hawks posted three kills in the opening set with Tylah Yeomans adding six kills herself for Wheeling.
 
Despite moments of outstanding defense, Wheeling worked the score tied at four in a competitive second set. Valentic countered back with her sixth kill of the afternoon for a 5-4 IUP advantage. The set remained tightly contested with both sides trading points. Caroline Walsh put down her second kill of the stanza for a 9-8 lead before the Cardinals leveled the score on the next rally.
 
A block from Walsh and Henderson put IUP in the lead momentarily with both teams continuing to trade scores. The Crimson Hawks opened up a rare two-point advantage at 15-13 following a kill from Simay Memisoglu. With a rapid-fire pace of play, the Cardinals reeled off a timely run of four consecutive points, forcing an IUP timeout trialing 18-16.
 
Down three, Anagnostou provided the Crimson Hawks with a much-needed kill in the second set, bringing the deficit to 19-17. A 6-1 spurt turned a Wheeling deficit into a lead and forced a second IUP timeout. A Peterson kill and service ace from Flowerdew brought IUP right back to within 21-19.
 
Wheeling closed out the second frame with some impressive offense from Watkins, moving ahead 2-0 in the match with a 25-21 triumph against IUP. While IUP was active on the defensive end, Wheeling still hit .516 in the set with Watkins dropping in 14 kills through two.
 
IUP worked to battle back from an early deficit in the third set following a three-point stretch, tying the score at five. IUP outpaced Wheeling for a 15-13 advantage as Valentic, Peterson and Anagnostou registered kills in the surge. Sticking with the play, IUP moved back in front and a block assist from Peterson and Valentic pushed the Crimson Hawks' advantage to 18-15.
 
Wheeling started closing the gap, etching the IUP lead to just 20-18. The Cardinals eventually worked the score back even at 21 with three consecutive points. Out of a timeout a big Wheeling block pushed momentum in their favor at 23-21. Valentic stuffed one down for a kill, trimming the IUP deficit to 23-22 and Walsh added another to hold off match point. Wheeling finished out the contest with a kill for a hard-fought 25-23 triumph.
 
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For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP women's volleyball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawks and @IUPVB.
 
   

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