Youngstown State University
3-8,0-0Horizon
Duquesne
4-6,0-0Atlantic 10
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Youngstown St. | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Duquesne | 20 | 17 | 27 | 14 | 1 |
School Records Fall, Gursching Posts Triple-Double in 3-1 Win Over Duquesne
9/17/2021 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The Youngstown State volleyball team had a record-setting night from the service line, and Paula Gursching posted the third triple-double in school history as the Penguins beat Duquesne 3-1 on Friday evening. The set scores were 25-20, 25-17, 25-27, 25-14, as the Penguins finished Kent State's Golden Flashes Invitational with a split.
The Penguins shattered the school record for most aces in a match with 24, breaking the previous mark by seven. YSU's total was also the highest mark by a Division I team this season, and Youngstown State was just two aces shy of the NCAA record for aces in a four-set match.
Gursching led the charge with 13 aces, six more than any other Penguin has ever had, and she added 18 kills and 11 digs. She joins teammate Josi Borum and Karla Everhart as the only known players in program history to have a triple-double. Gursching added one block assist to bring her point total to 31.5, which is a school record for points in a four-set match.
Borum contributed 11 kills and 10 digs, Lexie Beeke recorded 34 assists, and Reilly Seagroves posted 14 digs. Cheyenne Hlady had five total blocks, and YSU finished with seven blocks as a team.
Gursching's 13 aces tied for the fifth-most in a four-set match in NCAA history, and they were the most in a four-set competition since Wichita State's Sara Younes had 14 on Sept. 13, 2003. She had plenty of help from the service line as Beeke had five, Seagroves recorded three, Morgan Cleevely had two and Hlady added one.
The win avenged a season-opening three-set loss to the Dukes, and it allowed the Penguins to finish the non-conference slate with an impressive bounce-back victory. Duquesne won the first matchup by an average set score of 25-18.7. While YSU had an 18-point edge from aces, the Penguins also had one more kill, a .219-.191 advantage in attack percentage, five more digs and three more blocks than the Dukes.
Gursching had six of her aces during an 11-0 run in the opening set that flipped a 4-2 deficit into a 13-5 lead. The Dukes caught the Penguins at 15-15, but YSU came out of a timeout and outscored Duquesne 10-5 the rest of the set to take a lead in the match.
The Penguins then scored the first five points of the second set, and Duquesne's only lead was 12-11. Beeke and Gursching had two aces apiece during a 10-1 run that gave YSU a 24-15 lead.
There were 11 ties and four lead changes in a long third set that saw Borum collect seven of her 11 kills. Gursching reached double digits in kills and aces during the set, but she was stuck at nine digs. The Dukes saved three match points and scored the final three points of the set to win 27-25 and fourth a fourth set.
Beeke had three aces in a 6-0 run in the fourth set that gave the Penguins an 8-4 lead, and YSU led the rest of the night. Youngstown State also had an 8-2 spurt in the set, which fittingly concluded with a Gursching ace.
Youngstown State will begin Horizon League play on Sept. 24 against Oakland at 6 p.m.
