PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Frostburg State Volleyball team picked up their third consecutive victory with a 3-1 road win over Point Park on Tuesday evening.
 
After the Pioneers took the first two points of set one, sophomore Devin Brunk put down a kill and an ace to pull FSU level as the sides played up to an 8-8 tie. As part of a 5-0 run, PPU capitalized on four Bobcat errors to lead 12-8 and take some control of the set. Following an exchange of rallies, Point Park had four consecutive errors before calling a timeout, however it didn't help much as juniors Paige Mock and Maya Johnson joined on a block followed by Kunkle and sophomore Emery Kuebler doing the same as FSU took a 17-15 lead. The Pioneers netted the next pair to even the score, as the sides played out to a 19-19 tie. Kunkle and Brunk got back-to-back kills to try and give the Bobcats some late momentum, but Point Park scored the next three to go up 23-22. Frostburg then called a timeout, as back-to-back serving errors and a Brunk score brought things to 24-24, with Point Park again taking advantage on two FSU errors to win the first 26-24.
 
The Bobcats came flying out of the gate to start the second, as Mock netted her first pair of kills to start things off, beginning a 6-1 run in which Brunk tacked on a pair of aces and a kill of her own. Frostburg kept the momentum rolling with Kunkle finding the floor before joining freshman Adele Evans on a block, while Mock served up an ace to lead 10-2. PPU was finally able to settle themselves a bit, scoring five of six to pull within 12-9. FSU immediately hit back, however, as freshman Bailey Rafferty got on the score sheet followed by Brunk's kill to move ahead 16-10. A Pioneer kill would get them as close as they could the rest of the set, as down the stretch Mock put up a pair of blocks, one solo and one with Johnson, while Kunkle and Evans combined for four kills and a 25-13 set victory.
 
Kuebler and Brunk began the third set with back-to-back kills, however Point Park netted five of the next six to take a 5-3 advantage. After Kunkle put down a spike, Mock helped turn the tide from the service line, being able to go for a pair of aces while Evans had kills either side of a combo block with Johnson to go ahead 9-5. PPU battled back to get within 11-9 before a trio of kills between Evans, Mock, and junior Grace Yocham restored a five-point Bobcat lead at 14-9. The Pioneers tried to get back in the set with another three in a row, but Mock and Brunk put down kills and the former put up a solo block as the advantage grew to 19-12. FSU looked to whittle down the necessary points to take the set, as Mock, Johnson, and Kunkle all had kills while a Rafferty ace put things at 23-16, however Point Park rattled off four in a row to keep their comeback hopes alive. Rafferty assisted Kunkle on a kill to bring up four set points before scoring her own after a pair of Pioneer scores to win 25-22.
 
Frostburg looked to swiftly put things away to start the fourth, as Mock had three total points on a solo block, another with Johnson, and a kill, with a pair of Kuebler aces and a Brunk score putting things at 8-0. Point Park then rallied with four of the next five, as FSU's only points came from a pair of errors and a Mock kill with the hosts pulling all the way back to within 11-9. A couple of Pioneer errors helped get the Bobcats back up by three, but the hosts put down the next three points for a stunning 14-14 tie. Two more errors and a Mock-Johnson block put FSU ahead, but once again Point Park was there to even things back at 17-17. Still attempting to put the Pioneers away, Mock began to take over the match with a kill, back-to-back aces, and a block with Kunkle putting the Bobcats up 23-18. Point Park rallied as they had done all set with four in a row to get within one, as Johnson ended the run with a kill off the block for a pair of set points. A PPU kill kept them alive but the resulting serve went over the line as the Bobcats held on to the set to take the match 25-23.
 
A whopping four FSU players all recorded nine kills in Evans, Kunkle, Brunk, and Mock, with the latter hitting a match-high .389. Frostburg's 15 blocks kept the Pioneer in check throughout, limiting their attack to a .040 hitting percentage, as Mock and Johnson combined for 16 between the pair. Kuebler enjoyed a double-double with 27 assists and 12 digs as three other Bobcats had at least 10 digs in sophomore Allison Brown (20), Kunkle (16), and Brunk (14).
 
With the win, Frostburg improves to 9-12 on the year, while Point Park drops to 3-19. FSU will return to Bobcat Arena on Friday, October 31 to host Glenville State on Senior Day at 7 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.