Perfect Week Moves Volleyball into Top 5 in USCAA
The PSUGA Volleyball team moved up two places to number four in the country in this week's USCAA Coach's Poll
McKeesport, PA. – The United States Collegiate Athletic Association released their weekly coaches poll Thursday and the Penn State Greater Allegheny Volleyball team moved up two places to #4 in the country thanks to a perfect 2-0 week. It is the first time in program history that PSUGA has cracked the top five in the coach’s poll as they extended their season-long winning streak to 11 games.
The week started with a 3-0 win over Penn State Mont Alto on October 5th that propelled PSUGA into a tie for first in the PSUAC West Division. It was only the team’s third win in history against Mont Alto and gave them a big momentum boost. Sophomore Juliana Brill (Mount Jackson, VA./Stonewall Jackson HS) made history in the game, breaking the single-season digs record getting to 250 on the year, breaking the old record of 247 set by Laura Vazquez Diaz in 2014.
PSUGA would be riding high into their non-conference match-up with Carlow as they faced the Celtics for the third time this season. After falling behind 2-1 in the match, PSUGA came roaring back with set wins of 25-22 and 15-11 to secure the 3-2 victory. It was the team’s first-ever win against Carlow and upped their win streak to its current total of 11 games. Alix Ellis (Derry, PA./Derry Area HS) and Sueriah Timsah (Mesquite, TX./West Mesquite HS) led the offense with nine kills apiece in the win.
Ellis and Brill have both been making a splash in the Penn State University Athletic Conference during their sophomore seasons. Ellis currently ranks third in the conference with 205 kills while Brill sits in third with 287 digs. Teammate Andrea Ghiloni (Granville, OH./Granville HS) leads the PSUAC with 63 service aces and sits in third with 410 digs this season.
PSUGA currently sits all alone in second place in the PSUAC West Division with a record of 6-2 and is a half-game ahead of PSU-Mont Alto and PSU-Beaver who both sit at 6-3. It is a big week for PSUGA with both a playoff spot and a possible home playoff game on the line. It starts Saturday when the team takes on PSU-DuBois where a win will clinch them their first trip to the PSUAC Playoffs since the 2014 season. If they win that game, they will head into their match-up with PSU-Beaver on October 15th where a win would put them well on their way to clinching a first-round home game.
Tip-off for Saturday’s game against PSU-DuBois is scheduled for 2 p.m. inside the Wunderley Gymnasium.