Lions fall in Quarterfinals at Schuylkill

Schuylkill Haven, Pa. - The 2019 women's volleyball season came to a close on Thursday night with Hazleton's 3-0 loss at Penn State Schuylkill in the quartfinals on the Penn State University Athletic Conference postseason. 

Plagued by a slow starts in the first two sets, Hazleton was forced to chase down Schuylkill for much of the night. Hazleton came back from an eight point deficit in the first set to make it a game before ultimately falling in the first frame 25-20. Following a 25-11 loss in the second set, the Lady Lions rebounded with a strong effort in the third led by the hitting combo of junior Abby Bessoir (Dunmore, Pa.) and freshman RosaLydia Caputo (Howard Beach, Ny.) alongside freshmen Samantha Paisley (Weatherly, Pa.) and Isabel Sanlate (Bronx, Ny.) who combined for six aces on the evening. Hazleton led by five points late in the action but a sideout gave Schuylkill the serve trailing 24-20 and with no room for error, the number one seeded Schuylkill squad reeled off six straight points to win by a narrow margin, advancing to next week's semifinals at University Park.

Caputo led Hazleton on the evening with seven kills followed closely by Bessoir's six kill effort, resulting in 13 of Hazleotn's 17 kills on the night. Sophomore Alessandra Banta (Coatesville, Pa.) topped the stat sheet with 14 assists although Hazleton's bid to extend the season would be undone by double figure attack totals by Schuylkill's Noel Kaufman and Chloe Readinger. With the loss, the young squad at Hazleton heads into the offseason with a year of experience under their belt and high expectations for 2020.