WPU Drops to GVU on Senior Day

Oskaloosa-- The William Penn women's volleyball team fell 3-0 against Grand View on Senior Day in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Saturday.

The Statesmen (16-16, 6-11 Heart) lost by scores of 13-25, 27-29, 25-27, while being outhit .176-.065 by the Vikings (25-2, 15-1 Heart).

William Penn opened the first set with an early 8–4 lead but managed to add only five more points in the frame. Grand View responded with a dominant 15–2 run midway through, and the Statesmen couldn't recover, dropping the opening set 13–25.

The Statesmen looked poised to even the match in set two, jumping out to a 6–2 lead early, extending it to 13–8 midway through, and holding a 20–14 advantage late in the frame. However, Grand View refused to back down, mounting a 7–1 run to take a narrow 22–21 lead. The set turned into a back-and-forth battle as both teams reached 26 points, but William Penn couldn't regain its early momentum, falling 27–29 as Grand View took a 2–0 match lead.

Set three flipped the script from the previous frame, as Grand View raced out to a 5–0 lead, leaving William Penn searching for answers. The Vikings extended their advantage to 12–7, forcing a WPU timeout. The break proved effective, with the Statesmen battling back to even the score at 16–16. Grand View responded with a 4–0 run to make it 20–16, but once again, William Penn refused to back down, rallying with an 8–4 stretch to tie the set at 24–24. The battle pushed into extra points, but the Vikings held firm, scoring the final two points to close out the set 27–25 and complete the sweep.

Joceline Martinez (Sr., Orange County, Calif., Psychology) led the Statesmen with seven kills, while Khiani Jackson (Sr., St. Joseph, Mo., Psychology) and Alix Robinson (Fr., Pontiac, Ill., Political Science and History) each added six.

Kaya Caprini (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Psychology and Human Services) stood out defensively for WPU collecting 18 digs, and Amaris Williams (Sr., Milwaukee, Wis., Public Accounting) followed with eight. 

Mia Brady (Sr., Pontiac, Ill., Exercise Science) and Lydia Huston (Sr., Kansas City, Mo., Biology) shared the team lead in assists with 14 apiece.

Up Next: William Penn stays in Oskaloosa to close out regular season play against Graceland in Heart action on Tuesday at 7 p.m.