William Penn Sweeps Saturday Matches at Augustana Tourney
William Penn Women’s Athletics
Rock Island, Ill.–The Lady Statesmen volleyball team won two matches in its final tournament of the year as it competed in the Augustana Pumpkin Bash Friday and Saturday.
William Penn (27-14) opened the weekend Friday with a 3-0 loss to Wartburg (19-25, 15-25, 9-25) and then later in the day fell 3-1 to Principia (Ill.) (25-27, 26-24, 26-28, 14-25).
The navy and gold bounced back Saturday with a 3-0 victory over Iowa Wesleyan (25-8, 25-22, 25-21) and a 3-2 win against Simpson (25-20, 21-25, 25-23, 23-25, 17-15).
The squad’s 27 wins thus far this fall are the third-most all-time in program history and the most since 1985.
Wartburg 3, William Penn 0
Katie Rielly (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Digital Communications) was the only Lady Statesmen player in double figures with 11 kills, while Leyra Jusino (Fr., Bayamon, P.R., Biology) assisted on 15 winners.
Lacey Taylor (Sr., Cedar, Iowa, Elementary Education), an all-tourney selection, recorded 14 digs and both Kylie Giger (Fr., Elkhart, Ind., Undecided) and Jeanette Cunningham (Jr., Mt. Orab, Ohio, Elementary Education) managed two blocks (one solo and one assist each).
Principia 3, William Penn 1
Taylor, with 17 kills, and Giger, with ten, were both in double digits, while Rielly added eight and Alanna Connors (Jr., Libertyville, Ill., Biology) had six.
Jusino assisted 36 times, while Danielle Breeher (Fr., St. Louis, Mo., Undecided) came up with 36 digs. Cunningham again blocked two attempts (one solo, one assist).
William Penn 3, Iowa Wesleyan 0
Taylor paced the offense with ten winners, while Giger notched eight. Jusino produced 20 digs and Rielly served up four aces (three for Taylor). Breeher’s 15 digs and Cunningham’s two blocks guided the defensive effort.
William Penn 3, Simpson 2
The Lady Statesmen only used one substitution in its five-set win as Taylor and Giger highlighted the offense with 19 and 18 kills, respectively. Rielly contributed nine kills and Cunningham totaled seven, while Jusino had 48 assists.
Giger and Jusino both finished with two aces, while Taylor dug a team-best 33 opponent attempts. Cunningham was WPU’s defensive net star with four blocks (three solos, one assist).
Next: William Penn concludes its regular season next Wednesday by traveling to Cedar Rapids to face Mount Mercy in Midwest Collegiate Conference action at 7:30 p.m. With a win and a St. Ambrose loss to Clarke, the Lady Statesmen will host a quarterfinal match in the MCC Tournament next Saturday.
