Friday, September 16
Pittsburgh, Pa.
4:30 p.m.
Lehigh University
4-7
3
vs
1
Robert Morris
6-6
1
2
3
4
F
Lehigh
24
25
25
25
3
Robert Morris
26
18
23
22
1
Lehigh Defeats Robert Morris 3-1 on Day One of Panther Challenge
9/16/2016 7:48:00 PM | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Lehigh volleyball team broke out of a four-match slump with a 3-1 victory over Robert Morris on Friday evening on day one of the Panther Challenge hosted by the University of Pittsburgh. Lehigh is now 4-7 on the season, while Robert Morris slides to 6-6.
Four Mountain Hawks reached double-digit kill totals on the day, led by freshman Ana Spangenberg who recorded a season-high 14. Junior Kelly Bennett and senior Katie Jennison each tallied 13 kills, while freshman Emily Poole chipped in with a season-high 10 kills. Sophomore Megan Polak led all players in the match with 51 assists, while also recording 12 digs and three kills.
Including Polak, four Mountain Hawks reached double-figures in digs. Sophomore Emily Develle led the way with 18, senior Mariah Brantley totaled 12 and junior Hannah Chalk finished with a season-high 11.
Robert Morris started to pull away midway through the first set witha 15-10 advantage, but Lehigh used a late 8-2 run to tie the set, 24-24. On that run, Bennett accounted for four kills, including the last three points of the set for Lehigh. The Colonials would win the set, 26-24, on back-to-back errors by the Mountain Hawks.
Lehigh broke open a 10-3 lead, fueled by a 7-0 run, to start the second set. After surrendering a point to Robert Morris to cut the lead to 10-4, the Mountain Hawks regained their rhythm and ripped off a 5-0 run to extend the lead to 15-4. Robert Morris made an attempt at a comeback, out-scoring Lehigh 9-5 down the stretch, but the early deficit prevented a Colonial comeback as Lehigh would go on to take the second set by a score of 25-18. Poole and Spangenberg led Lehigh with four kills each in the second set.
After holding a five to six point lead through most of the third set, Lehigh had to hold off a late charge by Robert Morris to win the set and take a 2-1 match lead. After trailing 21-16, the Colonials went on a 5-0 run to tie the set, 21-21. The Mountain Hawks would use four kills, including two by Spangenberg, to out-score the Colonials 4-2 to clinch the set. Spangenberg finished the set with six kills and freshman Tori Hemsath recorded five, including the kill to end the set.
The third set started with RMU taking a 5-1 lead, but then Lehigh went on a 6-0 run to move ahead 7-5. The two sides kept things close through the middle stages of the set, but then another 6-0 run, fueled by a kill and two service aces by Polak, put Lehigh in position for the win at 23-16. The Colonials would cut into the lead by out-scoring Lehigh 6-2 in the final stretch, but the Mountain Hawks held on for the 25-22 victory to clinch the match.
The Mountain Hawks will return to action Saturday on day two of the Panther Challenge beginning with a match against host Pitt at 10 a.m., followed by a match with Western Kentucky at 4:30 p.m. The match against Pitt will be streamed live on WatchESPN. Live stats will also be provided for both matches on Saturday.
Like Lehigh volleyball on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates and team content throughout the season.
Team Stats
LEHIGH
RMU
Kills
63
43
Errors
32
15
Attempts
166
143
Hitting %
.187
.196
Points
75.0
57.0
Assists
60
42
Aces
7
5
Blocks
5.0
9.0
Game Leaders
Kills
14
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
13
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Volleyball
L
/ Volleyball
L/DS
/ Volleyball
L
/ Volleyball
RS/OH
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballRS
/ VolleyballVolleyball vs. Holy Cross
Saturday, November 08
VB vs. Loyola
Friday, October 10
Volleyball vs. American
Saturday, October 04
Mountain Hawk Talk - S2 EP2 - Volleyball
Friday, September 26
