Storrs, Conn. — The Youngstown State volleyball team pushed UConn to five sets but fell 3-2 to the Huskies at their home tournament on Saturday. The set scores were 25-23, 16-25, 25-11, 24-26, 15-7.
The Penguins had an impressive response on the second day of the UConn Tournament after falling 3-0 to Sacred Heart on Friday. YSU will go for its first win of the 2024 campaign on Sunday against LIU at 11 a.m.
Kiyah Franklin, Abbie Householder and Dayan Malave each had 12 kills to lead the Penguins, who had just three fewer kills than the Huskies but were outhit .221-.137. Isabel Schaefbauer registered 38 assists while also registering three aces, and Julia Sell finished with four blocks. Nyia Setla was strong in the back row with a match-high 23 digs.
UConn's Emma Werkmeister led all players with 19 kills, and Jess Perry and Audrey Rome both had 10 kills. Werkmister added four of UConn's eight aces.
Youngstown State set a competitive tone early in the match and took a 12-8 lead after a Householder aces in the opening set. The Penguins held a 22-19 advantage later in the stanza before UConn scored six of the final points to escape with a 25-23 win.
The Penguins didn't give into disappointment and surged to a 15-6 lead in the second set. Youngstown State had 15 kills in 29 swings and hit .448 in the set.
UConn answered and jumped out to a 13-3 lead in the third and won 25-11, but the Penguins counterpunched in the fourth and outlasted the Huskies 26-24 to extend the match.  A Sell block put YSU up 7-3, and the Penguins did not trail again in the set. A kill by Malave put YSU ahead 24-20, and her kill four points later stopped a 4-0 run by the Huskies that tied the score. With the Penguins having their fifth set-point chance, Werkmeister had an attack error to allow YSU to win 26-24.
The score was tied three times in the first eight points of the fifth set, but Youngstown State was never able to get the lead in the fifth. After a UConn error tied the score at 4-4, the Huskies registered five straight points to take a 9-4 advantage that was too much to overcome.
Youngstown State's match against LIU on Sunday will be streamed live on UConn+, and live stats will be linked on YSUsports.com.
