UNION, NJ – The Penn State Behrend women's volleyball team opened up the Kean Tournament with a 3-1 win over Plymouth State and the fell to Messiah 3-0 in a pair of matches on Friday night.
The Lions (15-7) took an easy 2-0 lead against Plymouth St. (25-16, 25-15), before falling in the third set in extra points (26-24) and then putting the match away in the fourth (25-17). The Falcons defeated Behrend 25-20, 26-24 and 25-18 in the nightcap.
Against Plymouth State, the Lions hit .259 in four sets thanks in part to Alyssa Samarco (Plum, PA/Plum) hitting .471. She recorded 18 kills and two errors on 34 attempts, while adding 14 digs and three aces.
Meredith Snyder (Parker, PA/Allegheny Clarion Valley) tallied a double-double with 15 kills and 15 assists.
After Plymouth State earned the first point in the first set, Behrend never trailed for a quick 25-16 win. Allania Banta's (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf) serving got the Lions a commanding 19-10 lead in the second set. Samarco and Snyder kills made it 25-15 for the 2-0 lead in the match.
Behrend quickly rebounded from the third-set loss with a 20-9 advantage in the fourth. Samarco and Samarco sandwiched two kills around a Kylie McSwaney (Greensburg, PA/Greensburg Salem) kill to give the Lions match point. A Plymouth State error gave Behrend its 15th win of the season.
Against Messiah, the Lions erased a nine-point deficit in the first set and got within two points but could not get a step ahead of the Falcons. Behrend held the lead in the second set until Messiah used a 9-3 at the end the game at 26-24. The Falcons took the third set for the sweep, 25-18.
Snyder and Lauren Blachowski (Newtown, PA/Council Rock North) each tallied eight kills, while Courtney Hopson (Erie, PA/McDowell) made 13 digs. Samarco led with 15 digs to go with seven kills.
The Lions return to action tomorrow against Kean at 10 a.m. and New Rochelle at 12 p.m.