Lady Barons Suffer a Loss against Penn State Altoona

By Dylan Ehle

STEUBENVILLE, OH - The Lady Barons took on Penn State Altoona in a home match on Saturday afternoon.  After three highly contested games, the Lady Barons fell to Penn State Altoona, 25-16, 25-18, and 25-18.

The Lady Barons got off to a slow match in the match, allowing Penn State Altoona to gain an early lead in the first game.  They made a rally midway through the game, but the deficit was too big, and they lost, 25-16.

The second game was similar for the Lady Barons, as they allowed their opponents to build a sizable early lead.  "We dug ourselves big holes in the first two games," Head Coach Kelly Herrmann said in a post game interview, "But, both times, we managed to rally back and get back in the game."  However, despite the Lady Barons' efforts, they lost the second game, 25-18.

The final game was the closest of the match, as the lead changed four times within the game.  However, after tying the game, 18-18, Penn State Altoona strung together seven straight points to win the game and the match, 25-18.

A large part of the Lady Barons' struggles was the absence of star middle hitter Ali Aeschliman of Steubenville, OH, who had suffered an injury in practice the previous day.  "Kelsey Bowker really stepped up in the absence of Ali, and Marie San Severino had a good game as well," Coach Herrmann said when asked how the team adjusted in the wake of Ali's injury.

Several Lady Barons posted impressive numbers in the loss.  Kristin Belleque had eight kills and seven blocks, while Kelsey Bowker had six kills of her own.  Defensive Specialist Nicole Henson added three kills and fifteen digs, and Paddy Scott contributed fourteen assists. 

"I thought we played a pretty good game today," Coach Herrmann said of the match as a whole, "We played hard and fought back.  Its tough losing a conference game like this....we're 1-3 in our conference, and we could be 3-1.  Even without Ali, we were evenly matched with this team, and we could have won today."

The Lady Barons will continue their season on Monday against Butler CCC at 7pm.