Volleyball Triumphs Over Penn, 3-1

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SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - The Seton Hall volleyball team won its fifth straight match after topping Pennsylvania, 3-1 (30-18, 24-30, 30-28, 30-23), on the first day of the Seton Hall Invitational. Junior Tricia Meyers (Cincinnati, Ohio) returned to form, and led the Pirates (5-3) with 20 kills and a .531 hitting percentage.

Seton Hall took game one easily, and held the lead in the early parts of the second frame. The Quakers came back to tie the game twice, but the Pirates had the answer both times keeping a comfortable lead. With the score 19-4 in favor of Seton Hall, Penn (0-1) rattled off a 10-3 run to take their first lead of the match at 23-22. The Quakers scored eight of the next 10 points to tie the contest at one game apiece.

Penn started off strong again in game three, but the Pirates had an answer. Trailing 13-10, Seton Hall went on a 6-2 run to jump in front. The Quakers quickly regained the lead and extended to three points. From that point, the game had two lead changes and eight ties. A kill by sophomore Melissa Bellomy (Arlington, Texas) gave the Pirates a 29-28 advantage, and freshman Sarah Osmun (Crystal Lake, Ill.) served up an ace to put Seton Hall ahead 2-1 in the match.

The Pirates used runs of 8-1 and 7-1 to pull away from Penn in game four to seal the win.

Junior Brittany Rahrer (Fort Wayne, Ind.) had 60 assists, 12 digs and tied a career-high with six kills. Osmun notched 19 kills and 12 digs. Sophomore Allie Matters (North Tonowanda, N.Y.) tallied 14 kills along with 15 digs for her third straight double-double. Junior Breanna Leisner (Bloomington, Ill.) led the Pirate defense with a career-best 25 digs. Seton Hall had four players with double-figure kills for the third consecutive match.

The Pirates will take on Stony Brook at 9:30 a.m. and Fairfield at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 9 to close play at the Seton Hall Invitational.