Statesmen Split Four Matches at Aquinas Tourney

Grand Rapids, Mich.--The William Penn women's volleyball team broke into the 2022 win column as it finished 2-2 at the Aquinas Classic Friday and Saturday.

WPU (2-4) opened the weekend with a 3-0 loss to St. Francis (Ill.) Friday (21-25, 27-29, 23-25), but later in the day picked up its first victory of the campaign, dropping host Aquinas 3-2 (26-24, 16-25, 18-25, 25-15, 17-15).

The squad doubled its win total Saturday by taking down Indiana-South Bend 3-1 (25-9, 25-15, 20-25, 25-18). Unfortunately, the weekend concluded with a 3-0 setback against Madonna (Mich.) (16-25, 14-25, 18-25).

St. Francis (Ill.) 3, WPU 0

The navy and gold were outhit .189-.088, but were in contention in all three sets. Unfortunately, they could not get over the hump versus the Fighting Saints.

A 10-5 edge in aces and an 8-7 margin in total blocks also kept WPU within striking distance. After falling behind 6-1 in the first set, the Statesmen rallied to get within one on a few occasions, but USF pulled away down the stretch.

William Penn looked poised to even up the match, leading 7-3 early in the second set. The Fighting Saints answered and the score seesawed from there. The Statesmen were on the precipice with a 24-21 lead, but failed to close it out, despite having five set points in their favor.

Trailing in the early parts of the third set, WPU battled back and again had St. Francis (Ill.) on the ropes. It was again not to be as a solid 22-18 edge vanished and the Statesmen were swept.

After being slowed last weekend, Alyvia Johnson (So., Owatonna, Minn., Elementary Education) had a strong start to the weekend with 13 kills on a .346 attack clip.

Kaya Caprini (Fr., Minneapolis, Minn., Undecided) was next with eight kills, while the duo of Alyssa Young (Sr., Winter Springs, Fla.) and Corrin Lepper (Sr., Jefferson City, Mo., Biology) both tallied five kills. Macy Bailey (Sr., Bondurant, Iowa, Business Management) managed 15 assists, while Cecily Liphardt (Sr., Lincoln, Neb., Psychology and Business Management) served up four of the aforementioned aces.

Defensively, Liphardt recorded 15 digs and Johnson added 13 to complete her double-double. Young was a part of five blocks.

WPU 3, Aquinas 2

In a match that saw the momentum sway back and forth numerous times, the Statesmen also witnessed history as Lepper tallied her 1,000th career kill against the Saints.

"What an exciting achievement for Corrin!" Head Coach Lauren Eldridge said. "This is such an amazing accomplishment for her and this program."

William Penn, which was outhit .137-.092, slipped by AU in the opener before cooling off into the negative percentages for the second and third sets.

The Statesmen bounced back to stay alive, posting a .273 mark in the fourth round. All of that hard work seemed to be for naught, however, as the crew faced defeat down 14-11 in the fifth

A Saints' mistake kept the door open and then Young and Johnson (twice) delivered kills to put the navy and gold in the driver's seat. The sides each exchanged points before Lepper and Johnson topped off the rally with a block.

Johnson matched her kill tally from the previous bout with 15, while Young just missed double digits with nine winners. Lepper, who becomes just the fifth player in school history to reach 1,000 kills, wound up with six kills, as did Kaya Caprini (Fr., Minneapolis, Minn., Undecided).

Bailey's 23 assists were a team high, while Liphardt was again WPU's most impactful server with three aces. She notched 19 digs, and was joined in double figures by Caprini (14) and Johnson (12) as Johnson collected her second-straight double-double.

Lepper also had a huge defensive effort with seven block assists. Andressa Borges (So., Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sports Management) was equally impressive with one solo block and six assists, while Young made her presence felt with one solo and five helpers.

WPU 3, Indiana-South Bend 1

The Statesmen were in cruise control as they dominated the first two sets against the Titans. William Penn, which finished at .276 overall and held IUSB to a .093 clip, was exceptional in the first go-round at .545.

WPU could not put the Titans away in the third set, but regrouped and made sure they completed the task in the fourth.

The victors went deeper into their bench in the match, employing 15 players. Lepper, as a non-starter, was one of the offensive heroes with 14 kills on a .400 mark. Caprini was a starter and proved to be even more efficient with her 13-kill showing coming at a .478 rate (just two errors).

The trio of Young, Jade Melton (Jr., Hallsville, Mo., Psychology), and Mariah Radmacher (Jr., Jefferson City, Mo., Nursing) were contributors with six kills apiece, while Riley Hungate (Fr., Joliet, Ill., Business Management) was good for five more points.

Chyanne Bradford (Fr., Rowlett, Texas, Education) earned the majority of the setting work with 25 assists, while she and Bailey both served up two aces. Liphardt's 19 digs were a team high, but Caprini's 13 digs helped her to a double-double. Young was the defensive star with one solo block and four assists.

Madonna 3, WPU 0

The Statesmen winning streak was abruptly snapped at two as the Crusaders recorded a .359-.086 advantage in hitting.

WPU was in good shape at the 10-point mark of each set, but unfortunately the wheels came off each time at around that juncture.

Caprini led the navy and gold hitters with seven kills, while Young, on a .400 mark, and Hungate both accounted for five kills.

Bailey's 13 assists, Caprini's nine digs, and Lepper's three blocks were all squad highs.

"We faced some more tough competition to get us ready for a tough conference schedule," Eldridge said. "We played some really good volleyball and were able to see how deep our roster is in every position. There are a lot of positives to take away from the weekend."

Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Friday and Saturday to host the Jimmy John's Classic. On Friday, WPU will host Waldorf at 3 p.m. and Trinity International (Ill.) at 7 p.m. On Saturday, the Statesmen take on Iowa Wesleyan at 9 a.m., before closing the event against Hannibal-LaGrange (Mo.) at 3 p.m.