The women’s volleyball team brought plenty of energy to the Stokes Center in its home-opener on Sept. 26, but fell 3-1 to Grove City.
Saint Francis entered the match with a young lineup and faced off against an experienced Grove City team. The Red Wolves fell behind early in the first set, but continued to battle.
“For our first home match of the year, I thought we played composed,” said head coach Sara Spielvogel.
After falling in the first set, the Red Wolves responded in the second set with their strongest run of the night. Saint Francis went on a 10-0 run, helped by six straight aces from Alexandra Sappia. The bench and crowd also kept the energy high as the Red Wolves came back to win the set, 27-25.
“My goal was to serve hard in the seams,” Sappia said. “Once I got the first few aces, I was able to control the tempo of the game by serving right after the ref initiated the serve.”
The positive energy continued into the third set as Saint Francis took an early 9-5 lead. Grove City eventually came back to win that set, however, and then closed out the match with a 25-15 fourth-set victory.
Freshman libero Yasmin Berres helped keep the Red Wolves in rallies throughout the match, finishing with a match-high 17 digs.
“What was really working well for me defensively was reading the hitters,” Berres said. “I was just ready for anything coming at me.”
Berres said the team did not let the first-set loss affect its mindset.
“We just kept fighting because it wasn’t over yet,” she said. “We kept coming in with high energy and reminding ourselves that we still had more volleyball to play.”
Sappia, a redshirt senior who has spent five years at Saint Francis, said she appreciated the support from the home crowd.
“I’m just so appreciative of the community and support when we are at home,” Sappia said. “I love being able to look in the crowd and see staff, professors and friends I’ve connected with over the past five years.”
Despite the loss, Spielvogel said the performance showed promise for her team.
“For us to take a set, give them a battle, and make them uncomfortable is extremely promising for the future of our young squad,” she said.
