WVSU falls in five sets

PORTSMOUTH, Ohio – The West Virginia State University women’s volleyball team forced a fifth set Monday night, but was unable to complete the reverse sweep, falling 3-2 to Shawnee State University. Maya Vilmar recorded a team-high 14 kills to lead the Yellow Jackets, while Gabrielle Elliott added 13 kills and Inka Oksanen contributed 12.

WVSU used an early 5-0 run to take an 8-5 lead in the opening set before the Bears nudged ahead 11-10. The Yellow Jackets answered by scoring five of the next seven points, carrying a 15-13 advantage into a timeout. Following a Shawnee State kill out of the stoppage, WVSU executed a 6-2 run to stretch the lead to 21-16 and force a Bears timeout. Shawnee State closed the set on an extended run to claim a 27-25 victory and take a 1-0 match lead.

The Yellow Jackets opened the second set with an early 4-1 advantage, backed by a pair of kills from Ahaziah Smith. Shawnee State leveled the score at 4-4, initiating a back-and-forth stretch until WVSU built an 18-14 lead following kills from Oksanen and Marcelina Pyka. Consecutive kills by Elliott eventually gave WVSU set point at 24-22, but the Bears saved both set points and scored four unanswered points to take the set 26-24 and extend their match lead to 2-0.

Shawnee State won the first five points of the third set and built an 8-2 lead before WVSU answered with a 6-1 run to trim the margin to 9-8, prompting a Bears timeout. WVSU leveled the set at 12-12 before stringing together eight consecutive points to pull ahead 16-12. The Bears drew within 22-18, but a Pyka kill and a combined block by Pyka and Oksanen gave WVSU set point at 24-18. Following a WVSU service error, Giatta Iquinto put down a kill to secure the 25-19 set victory for the Yellow Jackets.

Set four opened with Shawnee State taking a 5-2 lead before WVSU produced four straight points—including two kills from Iquinto—to claim a 6-5 advantage. After the Bears retook the lead and expanded it to 13-9, the Yellow Jackets reeled off six straight points to take a 15-13 lead into a timeout. Shawnee State leveled the score at 16-16, but WVSU closed on a 9-2 run—fueled by three kills from Vilmar and two from Elliott—to win 25-18 and force a decisive fifth set.

Elliott opened the fifth set with a kill before the Bears mounted a run to build an 8-2 cushion. Following a Vilmar kill and a Lilly Adkins service ace, Shawnee State scored three unanswered points to push the margin to 11-4. WVSU mounted a late surge, scoring four of the next five points to close within 12-8. The Yellow Jackets continued to fight back, using another Vilmar kill to draw within 14-13 before the Bears sealed the set 15-13 and the match 3-2 with a final kill.

WVSU returns home Friday, Oct. 30, to host Glenville State University in its home finale at the Walker Convocation Center. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

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