Simmons’ 23 Kills Helps Statesmen Escape Benedictine in Five
William Penn Women’s Athletics
Oskaloosa–Claire Simmons (Fr., Williamsburg, Iowa, Psychology) had a monster night as the William Penn volleyball team survived a scare against Benedictine (Kan.) to win 3-2 Friday.
The Statesmen (5-14, 1-3 Heart) picked up their first Heart of America Athletic Conference win by scores of 25-18, 25-22, 15-25, 24-26, 18-16. The home team outhit the Ravens (5-13, 0-6 Heart) .189-.144.
Simmons recorded 23 kills with a .245 attack percentage; her kill tally is the highest since Emily Stanton had 24 against Grinnell on September 26, 2009. The freshman also had 13 digs and three aces in the win.
Down 6-3 in the first set, WPU reeled off 12 of the next 13 points en route to claiming the first set. The second set was much tighter with the navy and gold trailing 20-18 late. Fortunately, William Penn came up with three points in a row and held off BC for the 2-0 edge.
The hosts never led in the third set, but appeared to be ready to close the book with four straight points to start the fourth set. The Ravens bounced back with a flurry to go up 14-10, only to have the Statesmen rally to lead 18-17. WPU stayed close, but never led again as a fifth set was forced.
The final go-round witnessed Benedictine leading 8-6 at the switch. William Penn rebounded to lead 13-11 and eventually closed out the victory as Simmons scored four of the squad’s final five points.
Savanna Hartman (Jr., Morgan Hill, Calif., Psychology) posted the match’s last kill, finishing with 17 winners and a .364 attack clip. Shawni Wills (Jr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Biology) added six kills on the night.
Leyra Jusino (Sr., Bayamon, P.R., General Biology) assisted on 48 occasions, while Ashley Miller (Fr., Kalona, Iowa, Exercise Science) also served three aces. Nicole Harrison (Jr., San Diego, Calif., Biology) finished with two block assists.
Next: William Penn travels to Kansas City next Tuesday to face Avila in Heart play at 7 p.m.
