STEUBENVILLE, Ohio – Despite strong individual performances, the Lady Barons volleyball team struggled as a whole in their three set loss to a strong Baldwin Wallace team. The Lady Barons stayed close throughout most of the match, losing 19-25, 20-25, and 24-26.

"There's just balance in volleyball where if you are playing well offensively, it limits their offense," Head Coach Kelly Hermann said. "If you are not playing well offensively, it empowers their offense and that's what we were doing a lot of times tonight. "

The Lady Barons struggled with miscommunications on offense, throwing off their timing and offensive sets, resulting in miss-hits and overpasses. These mistakes gave the Yellow Jackets an advantage both directly, through hitting errors, and indirectly by keeping the Lady Baron offense from reaching its full potential.

"Some of the time, it's our fault, and we need to clean that up," Hermann said regarding the miscommunication and errors. "Some of that will get better as we just play together more."

The Lady Barons defense also struggled at times in the match, with Baldwin Wallace finding open areas on the court to attack. Herrmann said her players needed to focus on their fundamentals, like setting their feet and keeping their weight evenly distributed when preparing to receive an attack.

"Getting to our final defense was a weakness in the game today," Hermann said. "But really, it wasn't so much that any one player wasn't trying or was playing particularly poorly. As a team, we just have to communicate better."

A series of mental errors allowed the Yellow Jackets to go on a long run in the second set, with Franciscan finding themselves down 21-10. With her team in a big hole, freshman outside hitter Ave Palguta made her presence felt, suprising even her coaches with two consecutive aces that sparked an FUS run and got the Lady Barons back into the game.

"I love the fact that Ave is oblivious to pressure," Hermann said. "She just doesn't let it bother her. She just can't wait to play. That's her attitude all the time."

Another spark for the Lady Barons came from senior setter Amy O'Keefe who was able to shift from setter to hitter at times throughout the match showcased her attacking ability.

The flexibility to turn O'Keefe into a hitter was created by sophomore Rachel Potopa whose ability to set from the backline frees O'Keefe from her setting responsibilities. The senior captain finished with four kills, third on the team, along with 11 assists, 16 digs, and one block.

"She's a good hitter," Herrmann said. "It's awesome that she's a good setter but I love being able to have her hit."

The Lady Barons look to make some improvements as they take on Muskingum and Bluffton in the Wooster Kilt Classic on September 12 at 6 and 8 pm.