Youngstown State University
4-5
Canisius
2-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Youngstown State | 25 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Canisius | 14 | 25 | 15 | 22 | 1 |
Volleyball Wins Akron Invitational With Two Wins on Saturday
9/10/2016 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The Youngstown State volleyball team earned a pair of victories on Saturday afternoon to finish an undefeated weekend and win the Akron Invitational.
The Penguins set a school record with 17 aces to start Saturday off with a four-set victory over Canisius. They then swept the host Zips behind an impressive .405 attack percentage in the championship match.
Senior Lori Vanbeek was named the tournament MVP, and she was joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Val Jeffery and Sarah Varcolla. Vanbeek averaged four kills per set while hitting an impressive .500 for the weekend, and Jeffery led an offense that hit .311 over the three matches. Varcolla was impressive in her own right with an average of 3.09 kills and a .397 attack percentage.
The Penguins beat Canisius 25-14, 21-25, 25-15, 25-22, and the scores against Akron were 25-17, 25-18 and 25-15. It was YSU's first three-set sweep of the Zips in school history.
Youngstown State has now won four of its last five matches to even its record at 5-5 for the season.
Against the Golden Griffins in the morning, Dana Borsz and Jeffery both had five aces, Varcolla and Lauren Blanco had three apiece, and Sam Brown added one. YSU's previous high for aces in a four-set match was 14 against Portland in 2001. The school record regardless of the length of a match was 17 versus Saint Francis (Pa.) in 2001. The Penguins had just four service errors.
Brown led the Penguins offensively with 12 kills, and Vanbeek contributed 11 as YSU hit .281 as a team. Borsz added a match-best 15 digs, and Blanco posted 12. Jeffery filled the stat sheet with six kills, seven digs and 32 assists to go with her five aces.
In the championship match against Akron, Varcolla had her best showing of the weekend with 13 kills in 24 attempts for a .500 attack percentage. Vanbeek posted 12 kills in just 15 attempts and had one error for a .733 attack percentage, and Jeffery and Borsz added 11 digs.
YSU didn't trail in the first set, and the Penguins' final deficit in the second set was at 4-3. Akron led 11-10 in the third set before the Penguins closed out the championship with a 15-4 run. Youngstown State hit at least .375 in all three sets and had a high mark of .405 in the third.
Youngstown State will try for its fourth straight win at Robert Morris on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
