LATROBE, Pa. – The Frostburg State volleyball team concluded the weekend in impressive fashion, picking up a pair of wins against Westminster and La Roche at the 2017 Bearcat Challenge Saturday afternoon.
In the opener, four players finished with 10 or more digs, two players handed out 10 or more assists and senior Naya Cheatem paced the team with 13 assists as the Bobcats rallied in a big way.
Westminster earned a 25-16 win in game one after hitting .273 and limiting the Bobcats to a .132 hitting percentage.
Frostburg rallied with three-straight wins for the match victory. The Bobcats squeaked out a hard-fought 28-26 win in game two and rolled to a 25-13 win in set three. FSU closed out the match with a 25-20 score in the fourth set.
The Bobcats hit a match-high .364 in game three and smacked 15 kills in game two.
Senior Madelyn Torres led the way with 21 assists, while sophomore Katie Onyundo registered 17. Senior Lindsey Scepura finished with a team-best 17 digs, sophomore Cori Smothers added 12, while both senior Zoe Harris and sophomore Kathryn Lough each had 10.
Freshman Gianna Carmona, sophomore Ashante Corey-Bey and sophomore Biamba Tshitenge each contributed eight kills. Tshitenge was named to the Bearcat Challenge All-Tournament Team following the weekend of competition.
Frostburg (3-1) picked up a 3-0 shutout in the second match of the day, defeating La Roche 25-21, 25-22, 25-14.
Frostburg racked up 13 aces, including three from Harris and Torres. Cheatem smacked eight kills, Corey-Bey had seven kills and Torres once again led the way for the Bobcats with 18 assists and had 40 for the day. Smothers had a team-high seven digs, followed by Onyundo and Torres' six each.
Frostburg and La Roche played a competitive first match as neither team was able to pull away before the Bobcats scored five of six points to take a 23-18 lead. The Bobcats jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the second match and held off a late Redhawk rally for the 25-22 victory. After falling behind 2-0 in the third set, Frostburg scored six-straight and used a 5-0 run to go up 14-7.
The Bobcats hit a match-high .182 with 16 kills in game one.
Frostburg returns to the court on Friday, September 8 when opens day one of the Rochestser Invitational. The Bobcats will play two matches that day, beginning with a 4:00 p.m. match with Rochester and capping the night with an 8:00 p.m. contest with Houghton.
Below is a list of the 2017 Bearcat Challenge All-Tournament Team:
Franciscan - #22 - Maria Ciola - Sophomore - OH
Frostburg State - #15 - Biamba Tshitenge - Sophomore - OH/MH
La Roche - #13 - Toni Torchia - Senior - OH
Muskingum - #14 - Taylor Fatheree - Senior - MH
Pitt-Greensburg - #21 - Erica Bosh - Senior - Libero
Saint Vincent - #18 - Sarah Wozniak - Sophomore - MH
Waynesburg - #4 - Alyssa Proper - Sophomore - DS
Westminster - #11 - Lexi Yoho - Senior - MH
For up-to-date game information, including live stats and video streaming, visit frostburgsports.com.
