Lady Knights suffer tough loss to Christendom

Entering Tuesday's home game, The Central Penn College Lady Knights led the Christendom College Crusaders in the power rankings by one spot. With both teams pushing to make their way into the top 20 before season's end, one could expect a great game. That's exactly what the fans got. Unfortunately for the home crowd, the outcome wasn't what they were hoping for.

Christendom defeated Central Penn in three sets, finishing with scores of 25-23, 25-15, 25-21.

The first set remained close throughout. Neither teams gained a large lead, but Christendom countered the Lady Knights' seven kills with nine of their own and edged out the home team.

The second set saw a slow start for the Lady Knights. Christendom defended the attack well as Central Penn hit only seven kills on 35 attempts. Led by setter Clare Duda, Christendom was able to pace their offense for a 10-point victory.

The Lady Knights came out with an intensity in the third set, but still found themselves down 16-10 before a timeout was called by coach Jason Barshinger. Central Penn tallied eight kills on 27 attempts, but it wasn't enough as the Crusaders finished the match with a 25-21 win.

"If you take away the few moments when we second guessed ourselves in the second match, this was an extremely well-played game," says Barshinger. "We gave ourselves the opportunity to play for the win at the end of the match. Sometimes it goes your way and, like tonight, sometimes it doesn't."

Danielle Crone (New Oxford, Pa.) filled up the stat sheet with eight kills, two assists, one ace, three digs and five blocks. She is now one kill shy of 100 on the season.

Freshman outside hitter Tytianna Mobley (Sharon Hill, Pa.) showed Knights fans the talented future in store for them as she crushed five kills. Mobley attacked at a 30 percent rate in her first collegiate match.

"We're very excited to have Tytianna on the court," says Barshinger. "She'll add more fire to our offense and she fits well in our family."

Setter Alexa Christman (New Holland, Pa.) dished out 16 assists, while Bachelle Upshur (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Janay Nelson (Clinton, Md.) both tallied three kills.

The Lady Knights travel to Penn State Brandywine Thursday for a match at 7 p.m.