The Lady Rams volleyball team has had one of the most outstanding years in the history of the school, and made the postseason for the third year in a row and fifth out of six years. They ultimately fell in the first round of the PSAC tournament Friday afternoon to the PSAC West’s second ranked Clarion Golden Eagles, who would go on to the final match, only to lose to California (PA) in three games.In an earlier match up this season where these two teams met in the PSAC East Crossover tournament, Clarion swept WCU three games to none. While that was not the case this time, West Chester still fell 3-1.
They fought hard, coming back and taking the second game to tie it up at 1-1, but couldn’t finish it out in the end.
The season has been one to remember. The team started off on an amazing fifteen-game winning streak, the longest in school history. They quickly became only the fifth West Chester women’s volleyball team to eclipse the twenty-win mark and, by the end of the season, would tie the school’s all time record at twenty eight wins.
Along with team records broken over the span of the season, there were a number of individual records made. Kristen Decker set the new West Chester record for digs in a career. Jacqueline Vivanco set the all-time school record for digs in a season, and senior Ashley Zech set the NCAA II record for consecutive serves with 28. That smashed the previous record of 16.
There still may be light at the end of the tunnel for the Lady Rams. There is a possibility the club earns a bid in the NCAA tournament, pending their ranking in the Atlantic Region and where the NCAA tournament selection committee places them.
California University (PA) emerged as the PSAC champions defeating Clarion in the finals of the tournament 30-27, 37-35, 30-20 last weekend.
Ryan Frisco is a first-year student majoring in communication studies. He can be reached at RF648257@wcupa.edu