William Penn Takes Five-Setter from Graceland
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Lamoni–The Statesmen volleyball team was the epitome of resiliency Tuesday as it defeated Graceland 3-2 in a Heart of America Athletic Conference match.
WPU (6-11, 2-4 Heart) won by scores of 12-25, 25-22, 28-26, 14-25, 15-13.
The team was outhit .185-.110, but the Yellowjackets (7-8, 1-4 Heart) were held under the .100 mark for sets #2 and #3.
It had all the makings of a quick night early on as GU scored 10 of the first 12 points and was never threatened in the opening set. The visitors bounced right back, though, rolling out to a 6-2 edge in the second set. Graceland pulled to within one at 23-22, but the Statesmen wrapped up the wire-to-wire win to even the contest.
The home squad reclaimed the momentum and was one point (up 24-17) from going ahead 2-1, but William Penn refused to surrender and not only scored seven in a row, but also denied GU on another set point at 26-25. In addition to the tying point, the navy and gold tacked on two more for the set victory and were in the proverbial driver’s seat.
Unfortunately, the rollercoaster ride had numerous twists and turns remaining as Graceland answered with a dominating fourth set. Despite entering the fifth and final set on their heels, the Statesmen stuck with the Yellowjackets through the first few points and eventually went up 10-8. Unfortunately, the home team then produced five of the next seven points for a 13-12 advantage.
William Penn would have the final say, however, with the night’s last three points to secure the win. It is the first time since joining the Heart in 2015 that WPU has claimed multiple league victories in a season, and its conference slate still has 13 matches left.
Claire Simmons (Sr., Williamsburg, Iowa, Psychology) eclipsed the double-figure mark for the victors, leading them with 13 kills.
Jordan Carter (Jr., Sigourney, Iowa, Elementary Education) and Nashali Cruz (Fr., Bayamon, P.R., Biology) were next with seven winners each; Cruz finished strong as she recorded the final two points of the evening. Shelby Mannes (Jr., Portage, Mich., Exercise Science) tacked on five more kills as well.
Haley Smith (Jr., Adrian, Mich., Elementary Education) posted a double-double of 34 assists and 14 digs, while Ashley Miller (Jr., Kalona, Iowa, Exercise Science) returned to the lineup (left with an injury last Saturday) and tallied 26 digs. Smith also served up a trio of aces.
Mannes, with three block assists, and Nesreen Iskandrani (So., Lawrence, Kan., History/Government), with one solo and two assists, topped William Penn at the defensive net.
“We started poorly, but responded well in the second set,” Head Coach Jennifer Carlson said. “They nearly came back, though, so closing out sets when we are in the lead is definitely something we need to improve upon. I am proud and excited for the direction we are headed. We are definitely not finished yet; we have a lot of conference play left to show the rest of the league what we are capable of doing.”
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa Friday to face MidAmerica Nazarene in Heart action at 7 p.m.
