TOWSON, Md. – The University of Pennsylvania volleyball team closed out play at the Charm City Classic on Saturday with a pair of matches at Towson's SECU Arena. The Quakers opened the day with a 3-0 sweep of Lafayette in a neutral-site affair before dropping a tight, 3-1 decision to the day's host, the Tigers.
Set scores against the Leopards were 25-16, 25-20, 25-20. Set scores against the Tigers were 25-21, 25-17, 18-25, 27-25.
Penn is 3-3 on the season after this weekend's action. Lafayette ended the day with a 2-8 record overall, while Towson is 9-2 and has won nine in a row including four this weekend (over Lafayette, Iona, Princeton and Penn).
Quaker Notemeal
*
Jenna Garner continues to play arguably the best volleyball of her collegiate career; the sophomore put down a career-high 19 kills (hitting .341) and added eight digs against Lafayette, then finished with 11 digs in the nightcap against Towson.
*Senior
Feyi Ogunlari had 14 kills against the Leopards on Saturday afternoon, a career best, and followed up with a team-high 11 in the nightcap. She hit .279 for the day (25K-8E-61A). She also had two block assists and three digs in the Lafayette match.
*Sophomore
Ellie Siskin had a double-double in the Lafayette match, with 10 kills and 13 digs, and also had a pair of block assists. She then put down nine kills against Towson.
*Senior
Anna Shohfi went the distance at setter vs. the Pards, with 39 assists (13.0 per set), and added two kills and 12 digs. In the nightcap, sophomore
Emery Moore got the nod at setter and finished with 43 assists (10.8 per set) and seven digs.
*Senior
Claire Deller made her first start since late in the 2023 season and led Penn with four block assists against Lafayette while also putting down two kills and adding four digs.
*In the Towson match, junior
Zada Sanger had 10 kills without an error, hitting .303, while sophomore
Adell Murray also had 10 kills with just one error, hitting .429. Murray also had two block solos against the Tigers.
*Freshman
Haley Kerstetter had a .500 hitting game Saturday night vs. Towson, with seven kills on 14 attacks without an error.
*Freshman libero
Addison Pollock continues to lead Penn on the back line; she had 25 digs against Lafayette and added 22 more against Towson.
PENN 3, LAFAYETTE 0 – How It Happened
SET 1: Lafayette led, 10-9, after a Carol Ulichney service ace, but following a Penn timeout Garner put down a kill to tie things. That started a five-point Quakers run that was fueled by Ogunlari (1 kill, 1 block assist) and Deller (two block assists). The Leopards never drew level after that, and a 5-1 run down the stretch sealed the set win for the Red and Blue. Ogunlari had six kills without an error on eight attacks (.750), while Siskin put down five kills on nine attacks (.556) and Pollock and Shohfi finished with seven digs each.
SET 2: The teams were tied five times in this set, the last at 11-11 following a Lafayette service error. That was the start of a 7-0 Penn run that was fueled by three Garner kills. The Pards responded with six of the game's next seven points to get back within one, but another Garner kill spurred a three-point Red and Blue run that gave them a 21-17 lead. The teams essentially traded points the rest of the way, with Deller and Ogunlari blocking a Jada Aksu attack to close things out. Garner (7 kills) led the offense while Pollock (10 digs) spearheaded the defense.
SET 3: The third set featured 10 ties and six lead changes, the last tie coming when Lafayette's Ally Feczko put down a kill to make the score 14-14. Garner had kills for the next two points, however, and that was the start of a 5-1 Penn run that gave the Quakers some separation. The Leopards got within two at 19-17, but they served up an error and then Ogunlari and Deller put down kills. That made the score 22-17, setting the stage for Ogunlari (2 kills) and Garner (1) to end the match. Garner had eight kills in the set and hit .636 (8-1-11) while Ogunlari put down seven.
TOWSON 3, PENN 1 – How It Happened
SET 1: The Quakers and Tigers were tied at 1-1, 2-2 and 3-3. Towson won the next two points after that, then responded to a Siskin kill with five more in a row to go in front, 10-4. The margin was still six, at 18-12, before Penn scored four points in a row to get within two. Ogunlari and Murray had kills in the run, while senior
Abigail Reid served up an ace. Sanger and
Bella Rittenberg had kills to keep the margin at two two more times, at 19-17 and 20-18, and another Rittenberg kill made it 23-21. However, that was the last gasp as Ella Sanders and Sarah Callender put down kills to finish the set for Towson. Murray had four kills on seven attacks (.571) while Sanger put down four kills on 11 attacks (.364).
SET 2: Penn led just twice in this set, at 1-0 and 2-1, at which point Towson used a modest three-point run to take a lead it wouldn't relinquish. The Quakers tied things up one more time, at 4-4, but the Tigers scored the next four points and essentially held that margin most of the rest of the way. It was at 20-16 that the hosts ran away from their guests, using a final 5-1 run to set the final score at 25-17. Kerstetter had three kills on five attacks (.600).
SET 3: Facing elimination, Penn rose to the occasion. The Quakers' lead was 5-3 when they ran off five points in a row and 10 of the next 11, opening up a double-digit margin at 15-4. Towson clawed its way back and made things interesting by getting as close as four late, as 22-18. However, a Tigers service error relieved some tension, and a Kerstetter kill and Pollock ace closed it out. Ogunlari had four kills and hit .333 in the set, while Pollock had six digs to go with her ace (Penn's fourth in the set).
SET 4: The Red and Blue were level with Towson just once until late; that came at 2-2. But the Quakers were always within shouting distance, never trailing by more than five. Towson had match point at 24-22, but a Garner kill was followed by two straight Tigers attack errors which gave Penn its first lead of the set at 25-24. However, the Quakers were next up with an attack error, and then Erin Brothers put Towson back in front at 26-25. That was followed by another Penn attack error and just like that the match was over. Siskin and Ogunlari both had four kills in the set, Siskin hitting .300 and Ogunlari .200, while Murray hit .600 (three kills on her five attacks) and Sanger added three kills without an error.
Up Next
Penn will play its home opener on Wednesday night, hosting NJIT at The Palestra at 7 p.m.
For the latest on Penn volleyball, follow @PennVolleyball on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.
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