CHICAGO, Ill. – The Baldwin Wallace University women's volleyball team competed on day two of the North Park (Ill.) Invitational inside the North Park Gymnasium. The Yellow Jackets () swept Kean (N.J.) University (6-6) by set scores of 25-14, 25-14, and 26-24 before falling to North Park (12-3) in four sets by scores of 25-20, 23-25, 25-17, and 25-18. BW finished the North Park Invitational, going 1-2 on the weekend.

Senior Academic All-OAC middle hitter Isa Luciano (Willoughby/South) landed on the North Park Invitational All-Tournament team as BW's solo representative. Luciano finished the weekend with 16 total kills and eight total blocks. Against Kean, Luciano finished with eight kills and no errors, hitting .615.

MATCH 1

BW earned a 10-6 lead to start set one against Kean (N.J.) Back-to-back kills by sophomore outside hitter Sam Rueda (Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley) and freshman outside hitter Gabby Schlecht (Naperville, Ill./North) earned the Yellow Jackets a 16-11 advantage, forcing a Cougar timeout. Out of the break, BW tallied three straight kills to go up eight points, and kept applying the pressure to take set one, 25-14.

The Yellow Jackets earned a 15-7 advantage after three straight points, forcing Kean to its first charge timeout of set two. Out of the break, a kill by Rueda and three straight aces by sophomore All-OAC libero Lauren Gardner (Avon/Saint Joseph Academy) earned BW a 12-point lead. BW went on to claim set two 25-14. After being down 11-9 to start set three, the Yellow Jackets tallied six points to force a Cougar timeout (15-11 BW). Despite holding a 22-18 lead after a kill from sophomore right side hitter Allison Weiner (Westerville/St. Francis DeSales), Kean tied the game at 24-24. An attack error by the Cougars and a big block by junior setter Olivia Zawadzki (Hilliard/Darby) and freshman middle hitter Maleia Thurber (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) sealed the set (26-24) and the match (3-0). 

KEY STATS

14 & 13 – Rueda earned a match-high 14 kills and notched a double-double with 13 digs
37 – Zawadzki totaled 37 assists and added four service aces
15 – Gardner finished with 15 digs, five assists, and three aces

MATCH 2

North Park jumped out to a 10-4 lead to start the match. The Vikings continued to build on that score, extending their advantage to ten points (19-9). BW rattled off six unanswered points to force North Park to a timeout. Out of the break, the Yellow Jackets earned two more points (17-19) before the Vikings outscored BW 6-3 to close the first set (25-20).

BW kept its momentum going into the second set, grabbing an early 11-8 advantage. The Yellow Jackets called a timeout at 21-21 after a lot of back-and-forth play. The Yellow Jackets outscored the Cougars 4-1 and closed the set with a big block by Zawadzki and Luciano, 25-23.

The Cougars earned a 14-10 lead on BW in the third to force the away team to a timeout. North Park tallied six unanswered points to extend its lead to 21-13, forcing BW to its second timeout. The Cougars won the third set 25-17. Mid-set in game four, the Cougars outscored the Yellow Jackets 6-1 to claim a 18-13 advantage. North Park outscored BW 7-5 to close out the set (25-18) and the match (3-1).

KEY STATS

13 & 13 – Rueda led the Yellow Jackets in match two of the day with 13 kills and 13 digs
13 & 8 – Schlecht tallied 13 digs and added eight kills
33 – Zawadzki finished with 33 assists and added six digs
27 – Gardner totaled 27 digs, leading the team

UP NEXT

The Yellow Jackets are back in action Saturday, October 1 as they host Marietta College for the 2022 Ohio Athletic Conference Opener. First serve is set for 1:00 p.m. in Ursprung Gynasium inside the Lou Higgins Center.