WASHINGTON, Pa. (March 23) – The Waynesburg University volleyball team hit the road Tuesday evening to take on the Washington & Jefferson Presidents in a doubleheader. The two teams battled hard as both matches went to a deciding fifth-set, but unfortunately for the Yellow Jackets, the Presidents narrowly edged them in both contests by a final score of 3-2.
 
The first match of the day counted towards each team's respective Presidents' Athletic Conference records, and the scores of each set were 25-17, 21-25, 19-25, 25-12, and 16-14.
 
Waynesburg (1-8, 1-5) got off to a strong start in the first set of the first match, jumping out to a 6-0 lead before W&J (4-4, 3-3) scored its first point. The Yellow Jackets pushed the advantage to as many as 10 (11-1) before the Presidents started their comeback. Trailing 20-11, W&J won six of the next eight points to bring the score to 22-17. However, Waynesburg managed to take the set by securing the next three points.
 
The Yellow Jackets kept things close throughout the duration of the second set, trailing by just two (22-20) late in the set. The Presidents pulled away late to tie the match at 1-1. W&J opened up the third set on fire, building to a 15-7 lead. However, the Yellow Jackets rattled off nine-straight points to take a 16-15 lead. From there, W&J settled back in and outscored Waynesburg 10-3 to take a 2-1 lead with a set three win (25-19).
 
The Presidents again opened the fourth set strong, looking to put the match away by building to a 5-1 advantage. However, Waynesburg dominated the remainder of the set by outscoring the opposition 24-7 and forcing the deciding fifth set. Although the Yellow Jackets never led in the final set, they tied W&J on five separate occasions. Waynesburg won three-straight points to force a win-by-two scenario. The Presidents picked up the final two points on hitting errors to secure the win.
 
Senior outside hitter Hannah Colvin (Hagerstown, Md. / Grace Academy) was dominant offensively for the Jackets, setting a new personal-best with 21 kills in the match. Those 21 kills were the most in any match by a Yellow Jacket since August 31, 2012, when Mabel Culp recorded 23.
 
Junior outside hitter Hannah Buhr (Jefferson, Md. / Brunswick) and senior right side hitter Mya Brooks (Lansing, Mich. / Holt) finished with eight kills each.
 
On the defensive side, junior libero Alyson Johnson (Raceland, Ky. / St. Joseph Central Catholic) had a match-high 31 digs, while also leading the team with five service aces. Colvin added 23 digs to her night for a productive double-double.
 
Senior setter Alexis Phillips (New Kensington, Pa. / Plum) paced the team in assists (19) and finished third in digs (17).
 
The second match of the day only counted towards each squad's the overall record. The scores of each set in this match were 22-25, 25-16, 25-21, 21-25, and 15-13.
 
Waynesburg went up 17-6 in the first set, but a furious comeback by W&J saw them outscore the Yellow Jackets 19-5 the rest of the way to take set one. The Orange and Black responded right back with consecutive-set wins, putting the pressure on the host team by going up 2-1. In the fourth set, Waynesburg led as late as 15-14, but W&J pulled away to tie things up and send the match to the fifth set yet again.
 
In that fifth set, Waynesburg went up 10-4, but then W&J rattled off a 6-0 run to tie things up. The Presidents continued to ride that momentum to victory, as the final set ended up being a 15-13 decision for the home squad.
 
Buhr led the team in kills with 14, while Colvin added 12 more kills to the cause. Freshman setter Trysten Smith (Senecaville, Ohio / Shenandoah) recorded 28 assists, while freshman defensive specialist Gillian Mulcahy (Allison Park, Pa. / Hampton) led the team in digs, with 21.
The Yellow Jackets will get a chance to rebound when they travel to Thiel on Thursday, March 25. Start time is set for 7 p.m.