STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (Oct. 18) – The Waynesburg University volleyball team looked like it was going to roll to a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) victory when it traveled to Franciscan on Wednesday. Unfortunately, the Yellow Jackets' 2-0 lead against the Barons evaporated and Waynesburg left town with a deflating 3-2 loss to the host squad.
 
The Jackets (8-12, 1-4) roared out of the gates by hitting .324 in set one on their way to a 25-18 win. Set two was more tightly contested, but Waynesburg was able to pull out a 25-21 triumph and take firm control of the contest.
 
Waynesburg held multi-point leads throughout most of set three, including a 19-15 advantage. Franciscan (11-9, 2-3) responded with a 7-1 surge that put them ahead 22-20. The Jackets answered the challenge and eventually made the score 23-22 in favor of the home team. The Barons completed the comeback to take its first set 25-22.
 
The Jackets again built a late lead (19-18) in set four, but Franciscan exploded to score the final seven points, three of which came on service aces, to tie the match with a 25-19 victory.
 
The Orange and Black shook off the disappointing end of set four to build a 3-0 edge in set five. Unfortunately, Franciscan caught fire yet again, this time ending the contest by outscoring Waynesburg 15-2 to complete the comeback.
 
The Waynesburg offense was led by the freshman pairing of Kristina Zadrozny (McDonald, Pa. / West Allegheny) and Carissa Krall (Johnstown, Pa. / Westmont Hilltop), who logged 16 and 11 kills, respectively. Junior Emma Hyatt (Carmichaels, Pa. / Carmichaels) chipped in 10 successful attacks.
 
Another freshman, Kendall Ellsworth (Carmichaels, Pa. / Carmichaels) did her part to help out the offense with a team-high 24 assists. Sophomore Riley Ruffley (Bedford, Pa. / Bedford) added 19 helpers in the match.
 
Hyatt, Krall and Zadrozny were effective at the net, having tallied four, three and three blocks, respectively. Speaking of defense, junior Jordan Stein (Manor, Pa. / Norwin) led the Yellow Jackets with 25 digs.
 
The Jackets are back on the road on Saturday, when they head to Saint Vincent for another PAC contest. Start time is set for 2 p.m.