(CHAMBERSBURG, Pa.) – The home finale was Wilson's finest match of the season as it swept Valley Forge in impressive fashion on Tuesday.
Abby Moreland (Jr., Sabillasville, Md. / Catoctin), Alison Daniels (So., Lititz, Pa. / Warwick), and
Ashlynn Babbitt (FY, Edenton, N.C. / John A. Holmes) worked as the perfect three-headed monster for the Patriots as all hit in double-figures and combined for 31 of the Phoenix's 40 kills.
Daniels' performance was particularly of note as she had the second highest hitting percentage in a single match for someone with between 10 and 14 attempts in the nation this season. Her outstanding mark of .909 was achieved by hitting 10 kills on just 11 attempts.
The Basics
Scores: Wilson 3, Valley Forge 0 (25-14, 25-11, 25-8)
Venue: Gannett Memorial Field House
Records: Wilson 2-20, 2-7 UE; Valley Forge 7-14, 1-9 UE
How It Happened
- After a back-and-forth start, the Phoenix started to pull away with a 6-0 run fueled by three kills from Daniels. Moreland got in on the mix on the service line with two aces as well. The Patriots caught some momentum by scoring six of the next nine before Wilson put the game out of reach on a 5-0 run with a pair of Moreland kills, another from Daniels, and an ace from Addie Hebert (Jr., Gettysburg, Pa. / Gettysburg). Additional kills from Babbitt and Allyson Garcelon (Sr., Shrewsbury, Pa. / Susquehannock) helped end the frame.
- The second set saw Wilson use an 8-1 run to vault ahead for a 10-5 lead with Moreland adding three kills. After an error, the Phoenix reeled off the next 11 points to take a commanding 21-6 lead. Garcelon lit the fuse on the run with a kill and was followed by a Daniels kill, a Moreland ace, a Babbitt kill, a Daniels kill, a Moreland ace, and another Babbitt kill. Grace Owens (Jr., Winchester, Va. / James Wood) got into the mixwith a pair of kills later in the set before Garcelon closed it out once again with a kill.
- The third ended up being Wilson's most dominant set. Michaela Windisch (Jr., Westminster, Md. / Catoctin) opened it up with two aces in the first three points. Valley Forge stayed close in the initial moments and made it 6-5 in favor of the Phoenix after a kill, but Wilson put out the flames on the comeback attempts immediately with a 9-0 run. Babbitt aided the rally with three kills and added two more later as the Phoenix posted a 25-8 set win.
Inside The Numbers
- Wilson's 40 kills easily surpassed its previous three-set best by 15.
- Wilson served up a season-best 17 aces regardless of set length.
- Moreland scored a match-best 11 kills in the victory and puts her over 200 for the season. She was incredibly effective on the serve as well with seven aces.
- Babbitt had another strong night in the front row with 10 kills, giving her 20 in the past two games. She did so this time on 19 attempts with just three errors for an attack percentage of .368.
- Windisch had her best night setting on the season with 34 assists in a three-set match.
- Garcelon also had a solid night in her final home match of her career with seven kills and eight digs.
- Defensively Hebert paces the receiving line with 12 digs.
- As a team, Wilson hit .354 on the evening, easily its best mark of the season. It is the best hitting percentage for the Blue and White in a match since November 2, 2021 when the Phoenix defeated Bryn Athyn in the CSAC tournament.
Up Next
The Phoenix will close the regular season out at Penn State Abington on Saturday.
