September 2nd, 2023 by WCBC Radio
The Frostburg State Volleyball team earned their first win of the season in a solid 3-1 match against East Stroudsburg on Friday evening.
Frostburg came out hot in set one, falling behind 1-0 on the first play, but fighting back to score four straight points on two errors from ESU, and two kills from freshmen Paige Mock and Emma Larkins. The Bobcats connected in every which way on both offense and defense, keeping the lead until the game was tied at 15 points apiece. During that rally, freshman Maddie Lewis and junior AJ Thompson got in on the scoring action, with redshirt senior Hayley Delor racking up the assists. The Warriors jumped ahead 19-18, before FSU clawed their way back for a 20-19 lead. The Bobcats kept the lead the rest of the match for a 25-21 victory.
Senior Beverly Braun started the Bobcats off in second set, knocking one down off an assist from Delor, for a quick 1-0 lead. ESU started to fight back, jumping out to a 6-1 lead, scoring six straight points. Frostburg would come alive, recording four straight points off a kill from sophomore Amanda Kniper, two attack errors by the Warriors, and a service ace by senior Jenna Gossard, all for an 8-7 lead. The teams went back and forth, trading one-point leads, until ESU found themselves up 21-16. Two errors by the Warriors and a kill from Delor brought the Bobcats back within two, but FSU was unable to keep that momentum going, dropping the second set 25-20.
Larkins was able to get FSU going in the third set, earning herself a kill off an assist from junior Fiona Gonzalez Medina, to tie things up at two. Again, both teams fought to keep their lead, trading points back and forth. The Warriors found themselves with a12-10 lead, before Frostburg quickly tied things up at twelve with a kill by Lewis. The Bobcats later scored three straight points to take a 16-14 advantage. The third set was a battle until the end with kills from Larkins and Braun giving Frostburg the 26-24 win.
ESU jumped out to a 6-4 lead to start set four, before FSU came back to lead 8-6 after a three-point scoring run. The Bobcats would capitalize on multiple errors by the Warriors, improving their lead to 10-7. Keeping that momentum going on offense, a service ace from Braun allowed Frostburg to be up 13-8. Another duo of kills from Larkins and Braun would increase the Bobcats lead to 17-12, as FSU didn't give ESU the chance to get back in the set, taking the set 25-21 and the match three sets to one.
Larkins connected on a game-high 21 kills, with Braun finishing with 11 kills and a game-high 20 digs. Gonzalez Medina added 19 digs herself, while Delor dished out a game-high 41 assists.
With the win, FSU goes to 1-1 on the season, while East Stroudsburg falls to 0-2. Frostburg is back in action tomorrow in day three of the kickoff tournament, taking on Bowie State at 11 AM and Pitt-Johnstown at 7 PM. For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.
