Lions drop pair of games at Cedar Crest College

Allentown, Pa. - The Nittany Lions lost both of their non-conference games on Saturday in a tri-match at Cedar Crest College. Hazleton fell in the opener to the host team Cedar Crest in five sets, their sixth such contest this season. Later in the afternoon, the Lions fell to Stockton University three sets to one, seeing their regular season record fall to 6-7 to date. 

Game one: Penn State Hazleton 2, Cedar Crest College 3 - Final

Hazleton was hot or colde in this one. The Lions dropped the first set 25-16 but bounced back in set two, scoring 10 of the final 12 points in the frame to carry a 25-18 win and even up the match. A rocky start to set three killed any momentum Hazleton had built up in the match. The Lions went on to lose 25-10 in the stanza however, Hazleton came back nicely to force a tie-breaker. Hazleton made a 9-1 run midway through the frame and later behind the serve of Claire Riera-Gomez, Hazleton reeled off six straight points to take a commanding 21-13 advantage. Hazleton finished off the fourth set with a kill from Rebecca Dzuranin and looked to break away in the fifth set. The final showdown between the squads was back and forth, just like the entirety of the match. Cedar Crest saw two leads evaporate and as the game came down to the final stretch, Hazleton moved ahead thanks to a pair of kills by Sydney Mack. Mack's final kill put Hazleton on top 14-13, but with the ball in their court, Cedar Crest forced a sideout to tie the game and ended the match with two straight points including a game-ending service ace. 

Another tough loss for the Lions sees Sydney Mack continue to roll offensively. The third year player totaled 19 kills in the game to lead the squad, with second year player Sarah Ballek adding seven kills respectively. Sophia Del Vacchio notched 28 assists in the loss with Nora Jones adding 24 digs on the defensive side.

Game two: Penn State Hazleton 1, Stockton 3 - Final

Hazleton struggled out of the gates in game two of the day, earning just three kills in the first 20 points scored. The Lions came back late in the action to make it 18-20 in favor of Stockton, but the Ospreys closed out the set with five straight points to take the opening frame. Set two was a battle in itself as both teams held leads throughout. The Lions had a set point on three occasions but failed to put away Stockton, but with the score 28-27, Claire Riera-Gomez finished off the set with a kill to square the match a one set apiece. 

Unfortunately for the Lions, the Hazleton squad ran out of steam after their seventh set of the day. Hazleton went on the earn just two kills in the third frame, falling to the Ospreys 25-7 in set three and a series of runs by the Stockton squad put the Lions away in set four, 25-15 to close out the day for Hazleton. 

Poor hitting and solid defense by the Stockon squad spelled defeat for Hazleton in the second game. Hazleton totaled just 28 kills on 129 attacks in the four set contest, compared to 58 kills for the Ospreys. Mack led the squad with 11 in the match with Rebecca Dzuranin add five kills. 

Next up: Hazleton is off on Sunday but gets back on the court Monday, September 23 when the Lions travel to Penn State Berks for an afternoon non-conference matchup at 3:30 p.m.