PHILADELPHIA - The University of Pennsylvania volleyball team (3-11, 0-3 Ivy) fell in five sets to Brown on Saturday evening at The Palestra. In a match that lasted just over two and a half hours, the Quakers won the opening two sets before losing the ensuing three to go down 3-2 to the Bears. The Quakers hit the road next weekend as they travel to Dartmouth and Harvard.
Inside the Numbers
* Penn scored more points (75) than Brown (72).
* The Quakers doubled the Bears in aces 11 to five.
* The Red and Blue still lead the head-to-head against Brown, 50-21.
* The Quakers were out-hit in four of the sets and for the match .140 to Brown's .170.
* The last time Penn lost after taking a two set lead was against Maryland in 2015. Penn also lost to Brown after taking a 2-0 lead in 2014. The last time it happened at The Palestra was also against Brown in 2013.
*
Raven Sulaimon,
Brooke Behrbaum, and
Parker Jones all finished with double-digit kills. It's the second time this season that the Quakers have had three players finish with double-digit kills in the same match.
* Jones recorded her fifth double-double of the season. All five of her double-doubles have come at The Palestra.
*
Caroline Furrer finished with a career-high in digs. The junior captain had 31 on the night besting her previous high of 25.
* Jones' 16 digs matches her career high. It's the third time that the sophomore has hit that mark.
* Behrbaum's 10 kills is also a career high. She had previously hit nine on three different occasions.
How it Happened
The Quakers got off to a strong start on Saturday evening looking for their first Ivy League win of the season. Penn went down 6-2 early, but three straight aces from
Madison Goldstein helped cap a 7-0 run, giving the Red and Blue the lead, one in which they would not relinquish. Brown tied the set late at 21, 22, and 23, but Penn took the final two points with the help of a Goldstein kill to take the opener 25-23.
Five kills from
Brooke Behrbaum early in the second set put the Quakers up 8-3. Penn went on a 4-0 run in the middle of the set to take a ten point, 19-9 lead. A Brown service error gave the Quakers the set 25-17 and a two set lead.
The match went back to the theme of small margins after the second set. After Penn tied the score at 7 in the third, neither team lead by more than two the rest of the way. Brown took the final two points to take the third 25-22.
Penn led early on in the fourth, but Brown stormed back to tie the set at 15. An ace from Sulaimon put the Quakers up 22-20 and three points away from the match, but the Bears went on a 6-2 run to take the fourth 26-24 and force a decider.
Once again, the Quakers led early on in the set. A 5-1 run put the Red and Blue up 5-3 and they led 8-7 at the change of ends. Penn took the first two points after the teams switched sides to take a 10-7 lead, but a 5-0 run from Brown and the Quakers found themselves down 12-10. Deadlocked at 13, the Bears took the final two points to win their third set in a row as Penn fell 3-2.
What's next
The Quakers head on the road next week as they travel to Dartmouth and Harvard for the next set of Ivy League games.
