Losing Streak Snapped with Sweep of Pride

Oskaloosa--The Statesmen women's volleyball team took out some recent frustration on Clarke in a 3-0 Heart of America Athletic Conference sweep Tuesday.

William Penn (14-9, 4-4 Heart) won by scores of 25-20, 25-11, 25-16 to end its four-match losing streak.

The hosts, who outhit the Pride (2-15, 0-7 Heart) by a .263-.083 margin, looked to be in for another dogfight as the opening set was a back-and-forth affair that featured numerous ties and lead changes.

Fortunately, while facing a 14-12 deficit, the navy and gold tallied six points in a row with Emalee Young (Jr., O'Fallon, Mo., Nursing) at the service line.  She recorded three aces in a row at one point, and the Statesmen never looked back.  Young finished with four aces, while also assisting on 14 kills.

The second round was also tightly contested in its beginning stages at 7-6 in favor of William Penn, but a pair of 6-0 runs helped the Statesmen secure a 2-0 edge in the match.

A stretch of five unanswered points in the third set gave the Statesmen a healthy advantage and they cruised to the sweep on a night where the victors held a 12-2 edge in aces.  Accompanying Young's serving success, Mia Brady (Sr., Pontiac, Ill., Exercise Science) and Kaya Caprini (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Psychology and Human Services) also posted three aces apiece.

Martinez was her crew's top offensive asset with nine kills on a .636 hitting mark, while Khiani Jackson (Sr., St. Joseph, Mo., Psychology) and Emilie Bojorquez-McFadden (Jr., Surprise, Ariz., Biology) each added six winners.  Hailee Pesek (So., New Hampton, Iowa, Nursing) was good for five more kills as well.

Brady finished with 16 assists, while Caprini recorded 11 digs.  Jackson had a part in three of WPU's five total blocks as well.

"It is great to get back on track with a clean sweep on our home court," Head Coach Lauren Eldridge said.  "We were able to play some clean volleyball, execute at the net, and force service pressure to get the win.  It was a great team effort."

Next Up: William Penn travels to Peru, Neb. Friday to face Peru State in Heart play at 5 p.m.