WEST CHESTER, PA. - The Marauders traveled to West Chester for their first conference match of the season and battled all the way through, eventually falling in five sets. In the absence of starting outside hitter Taylor Welter, Coach Brian Smith needed someone to step up. Two young hitters answered the call in Kalia Espenlaub and Sam White, who each posted the best game of their collegiate careers. They tied for second on the team in kills with 12 to pair with hitting percentages north of .425. Even so, it wasn't enough to take down the Golden Rams, who came back from down two sets to one to take the match 3-2. 
 
Neither team was able to gain an advantage of more than two points in the first set until three consecutive Marauder errors gave West Chester a four-point lead at 12-8. A few points later, the Marauders answered the call by scoring eight straight to return the favor up 17-13. Millersville finished the set on an 8-4 run fueled by two kills each from Emma Kerwin and Emma Ludwig. The final blow was dealt by the hand of Caroline Halsey, whose kill secured a 25-17 set one victory. 
 
Sam White dominated the attack for Millersville in the beginning of set two, recording kills on three of the first five Marauder points en route to a 6-5 lead. However, Marauder errors led to a 8-0 Golden Ram run and Brian Smith timeout. His young team responded with an 8-0 run of their own to go up by two at 14-12 featuring back-to-back Espenlaub kills. West Chester would contiune the theme, however, ripping off four straight after a timeout of their own. The two teams would battle back and forth through the rest of the middle game until the Marauders were presented with an opportunity to take a commanding two-set lead up 23-21. Their hopes were dashed as the Golden Rams took the next four points to level the match at one apiece. 
 
The middle game was all about the combination of Ludwig and White. The two teams traded points until Millersville led 10-9. At this point, the duo took over. Four consecutive Marauder points were scored by way of a Ludwig assist and White kill. Add in two West Chester points in the middle of that personal run, and the visitors were able to snag their largest lead of the game to that point at 14-11. Millersville would maintain that lead up 23-19 and won the set 25-19 with two more White kills via Ludwig assists. 
 
The Golden Rams needed to bounce back in a major way, and they did in set four. After taking an early 5-4 lead they claimed the next six points and later the set by a decisive score of 25-14. Smith attributed the outcome to his team's passing and a little bit of bad luck. "When we struggled, it was in small strings of passing.  In set four, every little thing went their way; It seemed like every little thing fell for them," Smith said. "We dug a hole and the momentum shifted."
 
It was only fitting that this conference opener would go down to five sets. Like set four, it began on the see-saw, as both teams saw leads of one or two points disappear. At 6-6, Elizabeth Villegas made her mark on the offensive end, recording back-to-back service aces heading into the switching of sides. That would be the last point Millersville would score, however. West Chester would score the last nine points of the match on the strength of six kills. Welter's injury was felt here according to Smith. 
 
"We made a few errors in a row and got stuck in one of our weaker rotations. It was a rotation that we had one day to work on as we try new options to balance the offense with Taylor out with an injury." 
 
Even with the result, he and his coaching staff were pleased with the team's performance. 
 
"We played well tonight. We had a great chance to win set 2 and that might have ended the night early. As a team, we hit .204 and that's great. We blocked better and served well."
 
The Marauders are back in action Sept. 27 against Chestnut Hill.


COACH BRIAN SMITH'S THOUGHTS

• On what his team did well: "We put up good numbers. Both middles had strong performances and good production and also provided better net defense. Kalia also had a great match. (Emma) Kerwin led in kills but the success we had tonight was Emma Ludwig getting the middle more involved and them stepping up. Our defense made some insane plays on the ball and added greatly to our success. We matched their net defense and outworked them in back-row defense. It was a tough loss, but we played well."
• On the effects of Welter's absence: "Caroline (Halsey) was asked to hit outside where Taylor plays and that's a tough ask. The hitting percentage was negative, but it did force us to trust our other middles more and that's important for the overall growth of this young team. Our staff's overall takeaway from this match was positive. We get a much-needed rest and look forward to getting back to work next week and playing on our court."

• The loss drops Millersville's all-time record against West Chester to 10-26. They haven't won since 2019, a losing streak of five games. The Marauders will get a chance to break that streak when they host the Golden Rams on Oct. 18.
• Starting outside hitter Taylor Welter missed her third game in a row due to an ankle injury suffered against Gannon on Sept. 9. 

• After starting the season slow, the Marauder front line has come into form over the past three matches. They've totaled 20 blocks over that span compared to a combined 24 in the previous eight. 
• Emma Kerwin led Millersville in kills with 13, while Caroline Halsey and Madison Williams ended with four blocks each to lead the team. 
• Sam White recorded a career-best 12 kills, besting her previous high of seven. She committed just one error on the night. Kalia Espenlaub nearly matched her effort, posting 12 kills (to beat her previous high of seven) to three errors. 
• The Marauders recorded 16 kills in set three. Six of those were from White, with Emma Ludwig recording the assist on each of those six.