By Joel Fuzo / The Jambar
The Youngstown State University’s women’s volleyball team concluded its season Nov. 15-16, with back-to-back matches against Purdue University–Fort Wayne.
Head Coach Riley Jarrett reflected on her goals ahead of the final games.
“We want to finish this year with some highs of being consistent, build momentum for the seniors to go out on and for the momentum of our program,” Jarrett said.
Youngstown State lost the first match in four sets 3-1.
Offensively, junior Abby Householder led the team as she recorded 19 kills and 13 digs. Senior Isabella Schaefbauer tallied a double-double with 40 assists and 13 digs.
Freshman Kelsey Cooper contributed 10 kills, the second most for the Penguins.
Defensively, senior Nyia Setla helped the defensive backline with 14 digs, while senior Dayan Malave sealed the first set with a block.
The second set featured four lead changes, but the Penguins fell short as the Mastodons rallied in the third set.
In the fourth, YSU closed the gap 14-13 after a slow start, but couldn’t complete the comeback.
The Penguins also dropped the second match in four sets 3-1.
Householder secured her 17th double-double of the season with 16 digs alongside sophomore Gabriela Machin.
Schaefbauer recorded her final career double-double with 37 assists and a game-high 21 digs.
Malave finished with six kills and three blocks while Setla added 11 digs in their final collegiate match.
In the third set, YSU led 18-13 before Fort Wayne rallied to tie the game at 20. Down 23-22, the Penguins scored four of the final five points to take the set.
Looking ahead to the spring season, Jarrett emphasized the need for growth.
“There’s still a lot of things we’d like to change. I keep telling our returners that there’s going to be more accountability, higher standards and more that we want to progress on,” Jarrett said.
The season marked Jarrett’s first year as head coach, and Householder expressed her optimism about the program’s direction.
“There have been so many different changes, there have been lots of adjustments but there hasn’t been one thing that I have disagreed with that we’ve changed and we are going to have a great future in this program because of her,” Householder said.
The Penguins finished the season with a 9-21 record and will return to action in the spring.
