BEREA, Ky. – The Baldwin Wallace University women's volleyball team defeated Berea (Ky.) College and Franklin (Ind.) College while falling to Centre (Ky.) College to go 2-1 at the Mountaineer Classic inside the Seabury Center.

BW (4-3) defeated Berea (3-3) in four sets on Friday night by set scores of 25-22, 22-25, 28-26, and 25-13. On Saturday, The Yellow Jackets fell to Centre (4-3) by set scores of 15-25, 22-25, 25-21, and 18-25 then swept Franklin (2-4) by set scores of 25-10, 25-15, and 27-25.

MATCH 1

The Yellow Jackets opened the first set with five straight points starting with a service ace by senior All-Ohio Athletic Conference setter Olivia Zawadzki (Hilliard/Darby). The Mountaineers battled back by tying things at 22, but BW would pull away to win the set 25-22. Berea would get back at the Yellow Jackets by taking the second set by a score of 25-22.

After a strong 18-11 start by Berea in the third set, BW recorded five late service aces to take a 25-24 lead followed later by another ace by sophomore outside hitter Gabby Schlecht (Naperville, Ill./North) to take set three 28-26.

The Yellow Jackets took an overwhelming 19-7 lead in set four thanks to three kills by freshman outside hitter Alexis Smith (Tiffin/Columbian). The Mountaineers would end the game with two errors leading BW to win the set 25-13 and the match 3-1.

KEY STATS

• 10 – Smith led the team with a career-high 10 kills and added 2 digs in her first collegiate start
• 31 – Zawadzki tallied a game-high 31 assists while also recording 6 service aces and 9 digs
• Sophomore hitters Taylor Denall (East Amherst, N.Y./Clarence) and Maleia Thurber (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) both added 7 kills each

MATCH 2

The Yellow Jackets fell to an early 9-4 deficit in the first set before Head Coach Kristina Fultz called a timeout. BW narrowed it down to only three points thanks to two kills each from Thurber and senior Academic All-OAC middle hitter Isa Luciano (Willoughby/South), but Centre would take set one by a score of 25-15.

The Colonels jumped out to another big lead in the second set, but BW went on to score eight straight points to tie the set at 10 after four service aces from sophomore setter Katarina Blazetic (DeLand, Fla./DeLand). However, Centre would take set two 25-22.

BW came out strong in set three led by junior outside hitter Sam Rueda (Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley) who tallied three kills including one to win the set 25-21 and to avoid the sweep. The Yellow Jackets would play from behind again in the fourth set but even after three straight kills from Schlecht, the Colonels won the set 25-18 to give the Yellow Jackets their first loss at the Mountaineer Classic.

KEY STATS

• 20 & 19 – Blazetic and Zawadzki assisted 20 and 19 times respectively
• 10 – Rueda led the team with 10 kills while adding 6 digs and a solo block
• 20 – Senior All-OAC libero Lauren Gardner (Avon/Saint Joseph Academy) led the team with 20 digs giving her a total of 39 digs in the first two games of the weekend

MATCH 3

The Yellow Jackets quickly took a 6-0 lead in the first set after two kills from each Thurber and Rueda. From there BW continued to dominate Franklin and quickly took the first set by a score of 25-10.

BW came out hot again in set two as it scored seven straight points to go up 9-2 and then later took a 20-10 lead. A couple of Franklin errors allowed junior hitter Sydney Simonson (Sullivan/Black River) to put the set away with a 24-14 victory.

The Yellow Jackets had to play from behind in the third set as the Grizzlies took a 16-10 lead. However, Simonson recorded 6 kills in the set to lead BW to a 27-25 comeback win to sweep Franklin.

KEY STATS

• 17 – Rueda led the team with 17 kills against Franklin and added 4 digs
• 30 – Gardner, sophomore defensive specialist Jamie Snell (Strongsville), and freshman defensive specialist Maddi Crea (Medina/Walsh Jesuit) tallied a combined 30 digs with 13, 12, and 5 respectively
• Freshman middle hitter Elysia Zehner (Ashland) made her collegiate appearance and recorded 2 block assists

UP NEXT

The Yellow Jackets are back in action Wednesday, September 13 at 7 p.m. for their season home opener against non-conference opponent Case Western Reserve in Ursprung Gymnasium at the Lou Higgins Center.