Oswego, NY -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women's volleyball team picked up a pair of wins on its first day of competition at the Oswego Invitational. The Panthers began their day with a 5-set victory over Utica, before closing competition with a 3-1 win over SUNY Canton.

Game One: Pitt-Bradford 3 - Utica 2

In the Opener, the Panthers got off to a strong start, winning the first set 25-18. They could not maintain the momentum and fell 24-26 and 16-25 over the next two. They battled back to win set four 25-19, and then closed out the match with a 15-8 win in the deciding set. 

After splitting the first six points of set one, Pitt-Bradford jumped into the lead with Danielle Sasuga on the service line, scoring 5 consecutive points. The Panthers took advantage of three Utica errors, while Lillian Bentley and Alycia Wilson each had a kill. Pitt-Bradford stayed ahead of the Pioneers through the middle of the set, answering short rallies to maintain their advantage. Leading 20-16, the Panthers put down three consecutive kills, and then closed the set with back-to-back sideouts. Ruby Smith had 4 of the final 5 kills for Pitt-Bradford.

The Panthers fell behind in set two, dropping 5 straight points to trail Utica 8-3. They responded immediately, trimming the deficit to one with a 4-point run of their own. They were not able to catch the Pioneers, as Utica ended the rally and then remained in front through the middle of the set. Trailing 22-18, the Panthers made a push to even the score. Pitt-Bradford went on a 5-1 run, which was punctuated by a Bentley kill to tie the score at 23. They answered a service error with a double block by Bentley and Jenna Louser, but could not close the set, dropping the next two points. 

Pitt-Bradford started the third set slowly, dropping 8 of the first 10 points. Three straight kills cut the lead to 4 at 12-8, but after an exchange of side outs, Utica scored 5 in a row to push their lead to 9. Late in the set, a pair of Alycia Wilson kills around one from Bentley cut the deficit to 6, but the Pioneers closed the set with three in a row.

Needing a win in set four to keep the match going, the Panthers started the set with a 9-0 run. Louser started the rally with a kill, and then Marissa Bowman tallied 3 aces in four serves. After another error, Bentley had consecutive kills before Smith finished the run with one of her own. Utica slowly cut away at the lead, trimming it down to 4 points at 15-19. The teams exchanged 3-point runs and a pair of sideouts before Smith closed the set with two straight kills to force a deciding fifth set. 

In the crucial set, the Panthes scored the first two points on kills by Louser and Smith, but then fell behind as Utica scored the next four. Bentley ended the rally with a kill before a Smith ace tied the score. The teams remained tied through 12 points, but the Panthers were finally able to put away the Pioneers, outscoring them 9-2 down the stretch. A pair of Bentley aces bookended two Wilson kilsl and a double block from Wilson and DeYoe put Pitt-Bradford ahead 11-6. After Utica scored two in a row, the Panthers forced 4 straight hitting errors to win the set 15-8 and the match 3-2.

Lillian Bentley led the Panthers with 20 kills, while hitting .190 in the match. She also added 3 aces and 12 digs. Ruby Smith and Alycia Wilson also reached double figures in kills and digs. Wilson finished with 10 kills and 18 digs, while Smith had 10 kills, 11 digs, and 3 aces. Marissa Bowman directed the offense to the tune of 36 assists, while also adding 13 digs. Danielle Sasuga led the defensive back line with 12 digs. 

Game Two: Pitt-Bradford 3 - SUNY Canton 1

To close the day, the Panthers took on SUNY Canton in a rematch from the opening weekend of the season. The Panthers were able to repeat their performance from earlier in the season, defeating the Kangaroos 3-1. 

A late Panther rally in set one came up short as Pitt-Bradford fell behind with a 23-25 loss, but battled right back with a 25-13 win in the second. They maintained the momentum for the remainder of the match, winning the next two sets 25-20 and 25-22 to secure the match victory.

In the opener, the Panthers stuck with the Roos early, matching three early points and then taking a 4-3 lead with a Danielle Sasuga ace. The Panthers could not maintain the early momentum, however, as Canton scored 7 of the next 8 points to build a 10-5 lead. Pitt-Bradford rallied with a 5-1 run to cut the lead to one at 13-12, but then saw Canton score 8 straight points to push the deficit to 9. Trailing 23-16, the Panthers made one final push, scoring 6 straight points to cut the lead to two. A side out slowed the rally, but kills by Lillian Bentley and Ryley Pago got the deficit to one. Unfortunately, they could not pull off the comeback, as a sideout ended the set 25-23 in favor of the Roos.

The Panthers scored the first three points of set two, but then fell behind Canton after a 5-point rally by the Roos. An attack error ended the run, and the Panthers struck, scoring 19 of the next 22 points. They started with an 8-3 run and then, with Alycia Wilson at the service line, rattled off 11 consecutive points. They closed the rally with 5 straight kills. Three from Ruby Smith and one each from Lilly Bentley and Brooke DeYoe. The Roos cut into the lead with a 5-1 run, but the Panthers closed the set with a double block to even the match at 1 set apiece.

Pitt-Bradford fell behind once again to start set three, dropping six of the first eight points. A service error and consecutive Bentley kills cut the lead to one, and then after a pair of sideouts, the Panthers went in front with six straight. Wilson and Bowman started the rally with kills, and then Bentley punctuated the rally. Neither team was able to string together scoring rallies through the middle of the set until Canton cut the lead to two with three straight. Smith put down a kill to stop the rally and then, following a side out, Louser and Bentley recorded kills to finish the set.

The Panthers started the fourth with a 4-1 run, but allowed the Roos to slowly chip away at the lead and tie the set at 7. The Teams exchanged 4-point rallies and remained tied at 11, but the Panthers were able to jump ahead after three straight Canton hitting errors. Pitt-Bradford pushed the set lead to 5 with a Wilson kill, but the Roos rallied with a 5-1 run to cut the lead to 20-19. A pair of Smith kills was matched by Canton, but the Panthers were able to close the match with three straight points.

Ruby Smith led the Pitt-Bradford attack, recording 18 kills at a .293 hitting percentage. Lillian Bentley added 16 kills, while Jenna Louser hit .353 and finished with 7 kills. Marissa Bowman tallied 42 assists, while also adding two kills and two aces. Danielle Sasuga once again led the team with 27 digs, while Alycia Wilson was just behind her at 23. 

The wins move the Panthers to 10-1 on the year. They will be right back in action with two more games in Oswego tomorrow. They will begin at 12:00 p.m. with another rematch, this time facing Keuka, who they defeated 3-2 during the opening weekend. They will then close the weekend with a matchup against Brockport at 2:00 p.m.