#5 Juniata Upset by #19 Washington-St. Louis at Wittenberg Invitational

SPRINGFIELD, OHIO- Juniata women's volleyball led 2-0 in their match with Washington (Mo.) but the Bears rallied to force a fifth and deciding set and ultimately won by the score of 3-2. The loss drops the Eagles to 6-2 while Wash U. improves to 6-5.

Overall, the Eagles totaled a season-to-date high of 102 digs. Six players reached double figures led by Kate Bryne's (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) 25. Shaina Robinett (Westchester, Pa./Leadership Charter School) added 22. Glen Brumm (Oro Valley, Ariz./Canyon Del Oro) tallied 13 digs followed by Korin Koehler (Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall) (12), Nakita Geahart (Waynesboro, Pa./Whitehall) (10), and Mar-Jana Phillips (Carson, Calif./Rolling Hills Prep.) (eight).

Brumm paced the offense with 19 kills. Gearhart and Phillips both tacked on 12 kills. Megan Moroney (Mentor, Ohio/Mentor) piled up 10 kills. Gearhart and Phillips both had three block assists with Gearhart also getting three service aces.

Juniata led in the first set 12-9 before the Bears rallied to go up 13-12. JC answered with a 9-2 run to lead 21-15. Wash U. got as close as 23-19 but a Bear attack error coupled with a kill from Phillips gave the Eagles two points and the set win 25-19.

JC got out to a big lead in the second frame, 9-3. The advantage would grow to 18-10 and 21-13. Wash U could not answer the Eagle attack as Juniata would go on to win 25-16 and lead 2-0.

The third frame was not different than the previous two as the Blue and Gold led at one point 14-11. The tide quickly turned as the Bears mounted a 12-1 run to go up 23-15 and eventually win the frame 25-17.

The fourth set was tight initially until the Eagles broke away and took a 16-11 lead. That advantage would not last long as a 7-1 Bear run gave Wash U. an 18-17 lead. JC inched ahead 21-19 but Wash U ripped off four straight points to lead 23-21. Juniata would keep pace with their opponent and made the Bears earn their points. The Eagles were up 28-27 but it was the Bears winning the set 30-28 and forcing a fifth set.

Wash U. took a 6-3 lead in the final set. A 5-0 run from JC put the Eagles on top 8-6. The two teams would go back and forth with the Bears clinging to a 14-13 lead. A service error by Robinett gave Wash U. the winning point and match victory.

Juniata looks to rebound tomorrow with a pair of matches. The Eagles play #3 Calvin at 11:00 a.m. and finish with Heidelberg at 3:00 p.m.