William Penn Heats Up on Day Two to Split at Season-Opening Event
William Penn Women’s Athletics
Cedar Rapids–The Lady Statesmen volleyball team went deep into its bench to find the strongest squad possible and may have accomplished that task at the Mount Mercy Zio Johno’s Mustang Invitational Friday and Saturday.
William Penn (2-2) opened the weekend by falling twice Friday, before evening its record with two victories Saturday. On Friday, the Lady Statesmen fell 3-2 to Missouri Valley (25-19, 21-25, 25-13, 20-25, 10-15) and 3-1 to Mayville State (N.D.) (25-27, 25-15, 19-25, 21-25). They rebounded Saturday, though, by defeating York (Neb.) 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-16) and Avila (Mo.) 3-1 (26-24, 22-25, 25-15, 25-20).
The offense improved each time out, advancing from a .187 attack percentage in the first game to .344 in the finale.
Missouri Valley 3, William Penn 2
The navy and gold had the Vikings against the ropes with a 2-1 lead in sets, but failed to deliver the knockout blow.
Jeanette Cunningham (Jr., Mt. Orab, Ohio, Western Brown HS) led William Penn with 13 kills, while the trio of Lacey Taylor (Sr., Cedar, Iowa Western CC), Katie Rielly (Sr., Oskaloosa, Des Moines Area CC), and Kylie Giger (Fr., Elkhart, Ind., Elkhart Memorial HS) all managed 11 kills. The group recorded all but three of the kills for the Lady Statesmen.
Dayna Sammons (So., Menomonee Falls, Wis., Menomonee Falls HS) finished with 42 assists, while Kendyl Honeywell (Jr., Excelsior Springs, Mo., Excelsior Springs HS) had 28 digs. Rielly was the best net defender with five blocks (three solos, two assists).
Mayville State 3, William Penn 1
Taylor, as she did so many times in her all-conference campaign last fall, stepped up to provide 17 kills against Mayville State. Giger, with 14 kills, and Rielly, with 11, also reached double figures. Cunningham was just shy with eight winners.
Sammons assisted on 38 points alongside 13 digs, while Taylor produced two aces. Danielle Breeher (Fr., St. Louis, Mo., Oakville HS) matched Sammons with 13 digs and Cunningham picked up six block assists.
William Penn 3, York 0
Rielly took the reins in the first win of 2012, collecting 12 kills. Taylor narrowly missed the mark with nine kills, while Sammons notched 20 assists and three aces. Breeher’s 12 digs topped all William Penn players.
William Penn 3, Avila 1
Four players eclipsed double digits in the fourth and last match, including a career-high 22 by Rielly (previous high was 13). Taylor (15), Cunningham (11), and Giger (10) joined her in the double-digit club.
Sammons set a career mark as well, nearly doubling her old record (29) with 56 assists versus the Eagles. Breeher dug 19 balls in the win, while Giger concluded with six blocks (three solos, three assists).
“We would have liked to have played better on Friday, but we needed to experience some growing pains with an almost new lineup out there,” Head Coach Jeremy Wise said. “We actually scored more points than our opponents Friday, but lost some close sets and ultimately the matches.”
“We played more as a unit Saturday to even our record,” Wise added. “We were able to get a lot of players on the court which helped to further evaluate where we are. I feel that we are a better team now at this point than last year and I am glad to see the fight in our young ladies.”
Next: William Penn travels to Lamoni Tuesday to face Graceland in non-conference action at 7:30 p.m.
