William Penn Runs the Table at UHSP Tournament
St. Louis, Mo.–The Statesmen women’s volleyball team built off its finish from last weekend and took down each of this weekend’s four opponents as it competed at the UHSP Tournament Friday and Saturday.
WPU (5-4) opened the weekend with a 3-2 win over York (Neb.) Friday (25-20, 21-25, 19-25, 25-21, 15-8) before defeating John Brown (Ark.) 3-1 (23-25, 25-14, 25-22, 25-19).
On Saturday, William Penn swept Friends (Kan.) 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-23), and rallied past Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) 3-2 (25-23, 19-25, 22-25, 25-21, 15-11).
The navy and gold have now won five matches in a row.
WPU 3, York 2
The Statesmen owned a .190-.138 hitting edge over the Panthers, but had to battle back from a 2-1 deficit to claim the win.
Needing its best at the end, WPU posted a match-high .474 attack clip in the fifth set to take the weekend opener.
Emilie Bojorquez-McFadden (Sr., Surprise, Ariz., Biology) was a workhorse, tallying 20 kills on 51 total swings. She also managed 15 digs for a double-double, and served up a pair of aces.
Emma Skoglund (Fr., Branson, Mo.) was next with 12 kills, while the duo of Hailee Pesek (Sr., New Hampton, Iowa, Nursing) and Maju Vieira (Sr., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Business Management) just missed double digits with nine winners apiece.
Courtney McWilliams (So., Rockton, Ill., Nursing) joined Bojorques-McFadden in the double-double club, finishing with 47 assists and 15 digs, while Maddy Gustafson (Jr., Marion, Iowa, Psychology and Human Services) topped the back row defense with 21 digs.
WPU 3, John Brown 1
Despite outhitting the Eagles in the opening set, the navy and gold fell into a hole, one in which they quickly climbed out of, as they dropped JBU for the second time in two weekends. Hitting at least .200 in each round, the Statesmen held an overall edge of .271-.112.
Four individuals eclipsed double-figure kills, led by Bojorquez-McFadden with 15. Pesek (14), Skoglund (13), and Alix Robinson (So., Pontiac, Ill., Political Science and History) (10) also accomplished the feat.
Mariah Reed (Jr., Fulton, Mo., Business Management) was good for an additional five winners.
McWilliams assisted on 45 terminations, while Isabelle Lagunas (Sr., Columbus Junction, Iowa, Nursing) paced William Penn’s serving night with four aces. As a collective unit, William Penn produced 10 aces.
Gustafson’s 22 digs led all Statesmen, while Pesek recorded a double-double with 14 digs.
WPU 3, Friends 0
The squad’s first sweep of the fall came via a season-best .281 hitting percentage; the Falcons were limited to a .167 mark.
Bojorquez-McFadden led the way with 15 kills, while Skoglund’s nine winners were next. Peske (7) and Robinson (6) also contributed on the offensive side.
McWilliams (28 assists) and Gustafson (14 digs) were key cogs in the sweep as well.
WPU 3, Freed-Hardeman 2
WPU wrapped up the weekend by again coming from behind. Down 2-1, the crew hit .480 in the fourth and .190 in the fifth, while holding the Lions to .000 in the final round. The Statesmen held a slight .181-.176 hitting advantage.
The match was won at the service line, however, as William Penn posted 17 aces. Abigail Mitchell (Sr., Oxford, Ala., Nursing) earned six aces, while Gustafson had five.
Ten kills came from both Mitchell and Pesek; the senior duo both managed double-doubles (Mitchell had 17 digs, Pesek had 10 digs).
Bojorquez-McFadden added seven kills, and Kalley Brase (So., Centertown, Mo., New Media) tallied five.
McWilliams’ 36 assists and Robinson’s three blocks were both team bests as well.
“Going 4-0 in a tournament weekend is tough, but we battled and competed at a high level,” Head Coach Lauren Eldridge said. “All of our wins took all 16 of us to buy in from start to finish. We had players step up in every position to help us win.”
“I am proud of the unity this team shows all the way through a match,” Eldridge added. “This was a great way to finish our road stretch before playing at home. It is a great weekend to be a Statesmen.”
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Thursday for its home opener, hosting Avila in non-conference action at 7 p.m.
