In what was billed as the SLIAC Game of the Week, the Webster University volleyball team at Principia College match lived up to expectations and more as the Gorloks came from behind to win the fourth set and the tie-breaker, 3-2. Losing 22-16 and down a set, the Gorloks rallied for a win in set two and carried the momentum to a win that solidified their first place standing in the SLIAC at 13-1. The action took place on October 10 in Elsah, IL.
Torie Grassi (JR, St. Louis, MO/Rosati-Kain) opened up the
tie-breaker with a kill and a Principia error made it 2-0. A Panther kill got them on the board at 2-1 but a block by Farrah and one by Taylor Kissel (SO, St. Louis, MO/Lutheran South) made it 4-1. A Gorlok error and a Panther kill just inside the back line made it 4-3. Macee Owen (JR, Tucson, AZ/Empire) had a kill to increase the lead to 5-3 but a pair of Webster errors tied it back up at 5-5.
A Panther block error and Webster block for a point made it 7-5 as Principia called timeout. At 7-6, a Samantha Budrovich (JR, St. Louis, MO/Lutheran South) kill off a Principia block gave the Gorloks a two-point lead at 8-6. A kill by Kissel gave Webster a three-point cushion but a Panther kill made it 10-8. Kissel had another kill and Principia called another timeout at 11-8. Two Principia errors gave Webster a 13-8 lead and a Grassi dump put Webster at match point, 14-8. A kill by Kristen Farrah (FR, St. Charles, MO/Francis Howell) gave Webster a 15-9 set win and the match.
Farrah got the match started off right with a kill to open
set one. After a Panther error made it 5-4, Webster, Principia outscored the Gorloks 4-0 to take a 10-6 lead. Principia extended the lead to 18-7, then 22-13, before winning, 25-15. The Gorloks had seven kills but six attack errors for a .036 attack pct. on the set.
In
set two the teams were tied at 10-10 before the Gorloks took a 15-13 lead. Principia had a 5-0 run to pull ahead 18-15. Webster was down 22-16 before it made its move. Webster took eight of the next nine points to pull ahead, 24-23 and had set point. Principia took the next two points and had set point themselves at 25-24. The Gorloks avoided getting into a deep hole in the match by taking the final three points for a thrilling 27-25 set win and tied the match at 1-1.
Webster took a 3-0 lead in
set three, and after Principia tied it at 4-4, had a 4-0 run for an 8-4 lead. The Panthers called timeout and went on a 6-0 run to take a 10-8 lead, with Webster again calling timeout. The Gorloks went down 12-10 and things still weren't going well at the net for the Gorloks as the team still had a negative attack pct on the evening and just one block. Webster would tie it up at 14-14 though, but a 4-0 Principia run prompted a Webster timeout. A Panther service error made it 18-15, but Principia would extend its lead to 21-16. From there they coasted to a 25-18 set win and took a 2-1 lead in the match.
Needing a win in
set four, Webster was tied at 9-9, 15-15, and 17-17. After a Principia error made it a 19-17 Webster lead, the Panthers took a timeout. Webster was in the negative on its attack, with 25 kills and 29 attack errors, but were hanging tough. A Webster block for a point made it 20-18, and a Farrah kill gave Webster a three-point lead at 21-18. An Ashley Robinson (SR, Bloomington, IL/Bloomington) dump made it 22-18 and a Principia error 23-18. A Panther error and a Webster block for a point gave the Gorloks a 25-20 set win and sent the match to a tie-breaker. After having one total block in the first three sets, the Gorloks had three in the fourth set alone.
Grassi finished with a team-high 14 kills. Maria Soffner (SR, St. Louis, MO/Incarnate Word Academy, coming off a SLIAC POW nod, had a team-high 28 digs. Farrah had 27 digs and eight kills. Kelsey Hamann (JR, Waterloo, IL/Waterloo) had 15 assists to lead Webster and pitched in with 17 digs as well. Kissel, who was big down the stretch had a solo block, three block assists, and four kills. As a team, Webster finished with 135 digs in the match, its eighth single match total in team history.
Webster defeated Principia earlier this season, 3-1, in a match that had an epic opening set won by the Gorloks, 31-29. The Gorloks have defeated the Panthers 23 straight times, dating back to 2007. Webster holds a 55-8 edge in the series between the two.
Webster is now 13-1 and holding down first place in the SLIAC. The Gorloks are 14-6 overall. Principia, who came into the match at 16-3 and 9-2 in the SLIAC, falls to 16-4 and 9-3.
The Gorloks will host Harris-Stowe State on October 12 at Grant Gymnasium. It will be Senior Night as the Gorloks will honor eight seniors.
