OSKALOOSA — William Penn women’s volleyball team hosted Mount Mercy for its annual Halloween Game, WPU picked up the 3-1 victory over MMU in Heart of America Athletic Conference play Tuesday.
The Statesmen (16-15, 6-10 Heart) won by scores of 25-15, 21-25, 25-21,25-20, while outhitting the Pride (11-11, 6-9 Heart) .184-.012.
William Penn struck first in set one, taking an early 3-1 lead, and from there it was all Statesmen the rest of the way. A huge block by Alix Robinson (Fr., Pontiac, Ill., Political Science and History) extended the WPU advantage, and she kept the momentum going by recording back-to-back-to-back points. The Statesmen then went on a commanding 6-0 run, forcing Mount Mercy to call a timeout. The break did little to slow down William Penn, as the Mustangs had no answers for the booming kills from Khiani Jackson (Sr., St. Joseph, Mo., Psychology) or the flashy digs by Amaris Williams (Sr., Milwaukee, Wis., Public Accounting). Mount Mercy burned another timeout, but could only muster eight more points the rest of the way as the Statesmen took set one, 25-15.
William Penn kept the momentum rolling into set two, jumping ahead 7-4 before the Mustangs tied things up at 8-8. The set became a back-and-forth battle, with ties at 9, 10, 11, and 13. Mount Mercy then found its rhythm, going on a 4-0 run to open a 17-14 lead. William Penn responded immediately after a timeout, but another Mustang surge pushed the score to 22-18. Robinson delivered a forceful kill to try and rally the Statesmen, but Mount Mercy held firm to win the set 25-21, evening the match at 1-1.
The Mustangs came out strong in the third, jumping to an 8-3 lead and extending it to 11-6 midway through. Both teams traded points before Jackson ended the Mustangs’ momentum with a powerful kill. Mount Mercy continued to control the pace, maintaining a five-point cushion at 15-10. However, a long rally and two huge kills from Emilie Bojorquez-McFadden (Jr., Surprise, Ariz., Biology) helped spark a 6-2 William Penn run, cutting the deficit to one and forcing a Mustang timeout at 17-16. Out of the break, Mount Mercy regained control with two quick points, prompting WPU to call timeout. The Statesmen came out firing, responding with a 4-0 run to take the lead 20-19. From there, it never looked back, sealing the set 25-21 with a key block from Maju Vieira (Jr., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Business Management) to retake the match lead, 2-1.
Vieira kept the pressure on in set four, opening with an immediate kill to spark a 4-0 start for the Statesmen. Mount Mercy trimmed the lead to 6-5, but another 4-0 WPU run forced an early Mustang timeout. The Mustangs again closed the gap to 10-8, but a thunderous kill by Robinson ignited the Penn Activity Center and forced another timeout. Out of the break, Vieira took over—recording both a dig and a kill to push the lead to 12-8. Both teams exchanged mini-runs before William Penn called timeout at 17-15. The Statesmen dominated out of the huddle, going on a 5-1 run capped by an incredible rally that went its way. Mount Mercy tried to mount a late comeback with a 4-0 stretch, but a clutch kill from Joceline Martinez (Sr., Orange County, Calif., Psychology) and a Mustang error sealed the deal as the Statesmen rang the bell with a 25-20 set four win and a 3-1 match victory.
Vieira continued her strong season, recording another double-double with 10 kills and 16 digs.
The Navy and Gold were powered by freshman Robinson, who led all hitters with 12 kills. While Hailee Pesek (So., New Hampton, Iowa, Nursing) chipped in six.
Kaya Caprini (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Psychology and Human Services) led the Statesmen defensively with 19 digs. Mia Brady (Sr., Pontiac, Ill., Exercise Science) and Lydia Huston (Sr., Kansas City, Mo., Biology) each added seven, while Williams contributed six.
Brady and Huston directed the offense with a combined 43 assists, Huston recorded 22, while Brady tallied 21.
“Great team win!,” Head Coach Lauren Eldridge said. “We played great volleyball start to finish and found ways to score points in big moments. I’m proud of the team sticking to the game plan and getting a big win.”
