HUNTINGDON, PA- Juniata women's volleyball claimed wins in both of its matches on Saturday at the Wid Guisler Invitational. The Eagles defeated Carnegie Mellon 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-22) and Stevenson 3-1 (28-26, 18-25, 25-20, 25-19). The two wins improve the Eagles' record to 23-7 overall.
Against the Tartans, Mar-Jana Phillips (Carson, CA/Rolling Hills Prep) led in kills with 12. Amelia Kepler (Kane, PA/Kane Area) chipped in nine kills and also had three assisted blocks. Nakita Gearhart (Waynesboro, PA/Greencastle-Antrim) and Megan Moroney (Mentor, OH/Mentor) both tallied seven kills each.
On the defensive side, Brittani Young (Columbia, PA/Hempfield Area) totaled 22 digs. Lydia Mueller (Carlisle, PA/Carlisle) added 10 digs. Kelly Reynolds (Upper Saint Clair, PA/Upper Saint Clair) contributed eight digs while also dishing out 33 assists.
Juniata led throughout the first two sets to go up 2-0. The third game proved to be challenging as CMU led early on. The Tartan lead was as much as 12-7 and was 18-14 at one point. A 10-4 run to close out the set buoyed the Eagles to the win and the match.
In the Stevenson match, Reynolds had her 10th double-double of the year with 47 assists and 14 digs. Her assist total matches her season-high. Gearhart also had a season-high in kills with 17. Kepler, Phillips, and Moroney all had 10. Young had 26 digs while Mueller added 11 digs.
The Eagles led the Mustangs early in the first frame but Stevenson came back to take over the lead. The most the advantage stood was two points as JC battled back to tie the set four times with the last occurrence happening at 25-25. A 3-1 edge in the end was enough to give Juniata a 1-0 lead in the match.
The two teams were neck and neck in the second game with the Mustangs breaking open a 11-11 tie with a 14-7 to knot everything at 1-1. JC stormed out to an 8-0 lead in third set that grew to as much as 11-1. While Stevenson would chip away at the Juniata lead, the Eagles held off the charge to win the game and go up 2-1. The fourth set played out in similar fashion as Juniata was able to fend off Stevenson and win the match.
Both Gearhart and Mueller were named to the All-Tournament Team. Mueller's three match totals were 19 kills, four assists four aces, 34 digs, and five blocks. Gearhart amassed 35 kills, nine digs, six blocks, four aces, and one assist.
The Eagles wrap up the regular season next Saturday at the Mount Union Tri-Match. Juniata will face Otterbein at 12 p.m. followed by the #9 host Raiders at 5 p.m.
