The West Chester University Lady Rams (15-6, 5-1 PSAC East) volleyball team endured a rough week. After defeating division rival Shippensburg on Tuesday, the Lady Rams dropped three consecutive heartbreakers to three of the top teams in the PSAC West.On Sept. 30, West Chester defeated the Shippensburg Lady Raiders 3-2. The Lady Rams won by scores of 25-21, 23-25, 25-19, 20-25 and 15-12. In the fifth and final set, with the match tied up a nine apiece, West Chester scored six of the final nine points to secure the victory.
Lisa Campbell led West Chester with 33 digs in the victory. Michelle Powers continued her dominant season with 16 kills. Lisa Yeasted had 50 assists and 15 digs.
On Oct. 3rd, the Lady Rams fell to Slippery Rock 3-1. After winning the first set, West Chester could not hold off surging Slippery Rock who won the final three sets consecutively. Slippery Rock won by scores of 23-25, 25-23, 25-21 and 25-23. West Chester was leading 16-9 in the fourth set, but could not finish strong as Slippery Rock rallied to close out the match.
Megan Musselman had 17 kills while Powers contributed with 12 for West Chester. Kayla Beck had 17 digs and three service aces. Yeasted had 40 assists and 16 digs.
On Oct. 4th, in the first of two games on the day, West Chester fell to the top team in the PSAC West and No. 17 California (Pa.) in a heartbreaker.
West Chester went down in five sets, losing by scores of 9-25, 12-25, 25-22, 25-17 and 15-11. Despite losing the first two sets, the Lady Rams showed heart and continued playing the nationally ranked Lady Vulcans tough to the very end.
Beck led West Chester with 22 digs in the loss. Powers recorded 12 kills and four blocks. Musselman had 11 kills, two aces and one block. Yeasted had another 30 assists and 16 digs in the match.
In the second match on Saturday, West Chester fell to Mercyhurst in a PSAC crossover match 3-1. The Lady Rams fell by scores of 18-25, 23-25, 25-19 and 15-25.
Beck continued her strong play as she recorded 20 digs on the afternoon. Yeasted recorded 33 assists, eight digs and three kills in the loss. Powers had 14 kills, while Musselman had 12. Jacqueline Vivanco had 10 digs for West Chester.
After the week, West Chester sits in second place in the PSAC East, a half game behind Lock Haven, who is 5-0 in conference play. The Lady Rams are a game and a half up on East Stroudsburg, who sits in third place.
This week, West Chester has two matches, one at home and one on the road. On Tuesday, Oct. 7, the Lady Rams will host PSAC East rival East Stroudsburg at 7 p.m. at Hollinger Field House. On Saturday, Oct. 11, West Chester will travel to New York for a 1 p.m. matchup with Mercy College.
LJ Harrell is a third-year student majoring in business. He can be reached at LH639694@wcupa.edu.