West Liberty, W.Va. – The West Liberty University volleyball team saw their 5-game win streak come to an end on Friday night to the hands of not only one of the top teams in the Mountain East Conference, but the Atlantic Region, when they faced West Virginia State inside the ASRC. The Hilltoppers and Yellow Jackets gave each other all they could handle in the first three sets, but WVSU pulled away in the fourth to claim the 3-1 win with set scores of 25-20, 26-28, 25-22, and 25-10. Prior to first serve the Black & Gold recognized three seniors, Katelynn Fritz, Laura Gamel, and Kaija Sydlowski.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: West Liberty 1, West Virginia State 3
Team Records: West Liberty 19-7 (8-3 MEC), West Virginia State 20-4 (10-1 MEC)
Attendance: 228
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After West Virginia State opened the match with a 5-2 advantage, three consecutive blocks from the likes of Page Gross, Liv McAtee, and Leah Driscoll started a 10-4 scoring run to put West Liberty in front by three. The Yellow Jackets then proceeded to tie the match at 12 with three straight points, however a pair of kills from McAtee helped the Hilltoppers fight to maintain the narrow edge at 18-17 heading into the later portion of the opening frame. WVSU swung the momentum in their direction to close the first set as they scored eight of the final ten points, clinching set point at 25-20.
• Senior Kaija Sydlowski took the court for the first time since an injury in the home opener, serving the first two points in set two as West Liberty opened up a 5-2 advantage. West Virginia State responded by scoring the next three points to begin a 10-3 scoring run to take a four point lead. After falling behind midway through the set the Hilltoppers continued to battle back as a McAtee kill started an 11-2 run, including a stretch of seven consecutive points to grab a 19-14 lead. The momentum swings continued as the Yellow Jackets returned the favor with a 10-1 run, setting themselves up for set point at 24-20. A solo block from Grace Hill set the tone for the end of the frame as WLU fought off four consecutive set point opportunities for WVSU. After the Black & Gold gained a 25-24 edge the teams then continued to go back-and-forth until a service ace by Laura Gamel clinched the set at 28-26.
• While a kill by McAtee gave WLU the 1-0 lead in set three, it was West Virginia State who quieted the ASRC crowd and gained the momentum with the early 7-2 advantage. McAtee and Gross were able to put down a pair of kills to help cut the deficit to three, however the Yellow Jackets rallied off four straight to push the lead to seven points. With back-and-forth action midway through the set, WLU remained within striking distance, but McAtee once again had the hot hand to keep the Hilltoppers going as she put down a pair of kills in a 4-1 scoring run that cut the deficit to 22-21. A kill by Ashley Cudnik made it a 23-22 score but a double block and a kill clinched the set at 25-22 for the Yellow Jackets.
• Kills by Gross, Katelynn Fritz, and McAtee kept things close early in set four, however West Virginia State seized the momentum with a 6-0 scoring run to take an 11-3 lead. Cudnik led the WLU attack with a trio of kills in the final frame, however the Black & Gold were unable to swing the momentum back their direction as the Yellow Jackets hit a match high .400 en route to a 25-10 set win.
• West Virginia State held the advantage in the match with a .187 attack percentage compared to only .012 for West Liberty. The Yellow Jackets also held the edge in points (74-51), kills (56-40), blocks (15-7), and assists (46-35) while the Hilltoppers held the advantage in aces (4-3) and digs (67-66).
• On a night where she was recognized prior to the match for recording her 1,000^th career dig the last time the Hilltoppers played in the ASRC, Fritz recorded her second consecutive match of 15 or more digs and eighth of the season.
• Nyia Setla has reached double digit digs in 25 of 26 matches in 2023 and notched her 11^th outing of 20 or more digs.
• McAtee matched a career-high 15 kills for the third time this season and reached double digit kills for the eighth time (third consecutive match).
• Dakoda Keni collected her fourth straight double-double and tenth of the season. She reached 30 or more assists for the 14^th time on the year.

WEST LIBERTY STATISTICAL LEADERS
Liv McAtee: 15 kills, .143 attack percentage, 3 blocks, 1 dig
Dakoda Keni: 32 assists, 10 digs, 3 kills, 1 block
Nyia Setla: 21 digs, 3 assists
Katelynn Fritz: 16 digs, 7 kills, 1 ace
 
UP NEXT
West Liberty will remain at home for their midweek match this upcoming week, hosting Salem on Halloween night (Tuesday, October 31). The Hilltoppers and Tigers are set for a 7 p.m. first serve in the ASRC.