September 8, 2019
RECAP >> It was tough 24-hour stretch for the Emmaus girls volleyball team to close out this past week as they dropped a pair of road matches against two perennial state powers.
After sweeping Northampton in their Eastern Pennsylvania Conference opener on Tuesday to get the week off to a good start, the Hornets struggled in a pair of road contests on Thursday and Friday as they were defeated by rival Parkland (3-1) and District 1 power Bishop Shanahan (3-0). Both teams are ranked in the first Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association (PVCA) poll with the Trojans at No.2 and the Eagles at No.4.
In Thursday’s loss at Parkland, Emmaus dropped the first set 25-18, but were able to rally to win Set 2 (26-24) and tie the match at 1-1. Sets 3 and 4 were tightly-contested, but unfortunately both went the way of the Trojans – 25-21 and 25-22 – as they handed the Hornets their first league loss of the season.
Senior Macy Van Den Elzen led Emmaus with a team-high 19 kills, while junior Jaya Bhagat had a solid all-around game with 14 kills and 12 digs. Sophomore Kassidy Hallman dished out 23 assists and defensively, senior Kelsie Baus had 27 digs. Two freshmen – Hannah Horvath and Alice Frank – also played well with 9 and 7 assists, respectively.
Parkland, which was coming off a season-opening 3-2 loss to Central Catholic. was led by sophomore Brynn Dreisbach who had a match-high 24 kills and 14 digs. Teammate senior Amber Resendez had 12 kills and junior setter Jackie Malitzki handed out a match-best 45 assists.
The match was broadcasted on Penn Sports Radio out of Emmaus. To listen to a replay, visit www.pennsportsradio.com and click on the archive section.
Emmaus will be back in action on Monday as they play at home for the first time this season hosting Nazareth at 6:15 p.m. The Hornets will also host Whitehall at the same time on Wednesday before closing out the week with a road match at Easton on Friday at 4:30 p.m
Follow @Emmaussports.com on Twitter and ‘like’ Emmaus girls volleyball on facebook to keep up to date on the team throughout the season
Bishop Shanahan 3, Emmaus 0 (Played Fri. @ Bishop Shanahan)
Em – 14-12-23
BS – 25-25-25
Em stats:
Kills – Macy Van Den Elzen 6, Jaya Bhagat 3
Digs – Bhagat/Kelsie Baus 7
Assists – Kassidy Hallman 7, Alice Frank 5
Bish stats: Not available
Parkland 3, Emmaus 1 (Played Thurs. @ Parkland)
Em – 18-26-21-22
Pa – 25-24-25-25
Em stats:
Kills – Macy Van Den Elzen 19, Jaya Bhagat 14, Abby Schweitzer 5
Digs – Kelsie Baus 27, Bhagat 12, Mia Pickering 8
Assists – Kassidy Hallman 23, Hannah Horvath 9, Alice Frank 7
Park stats:
Kills – Brynn Dreisbach 24, Amber Resendez 12, Scarlett Jago/Lauren Ceh 8
Digs – Leah Brunnabend 18, Jago/Dreisbach 14
Assists – Jackie Malitzki 45