WILMINGTON, Del. – Despite dropping the first two sets, Millersville women's volleyball showed grit in its match against Goldey-Beacom. The Marauders came back from a six-point deficit to take the third game and almost did so once more in set four before falling 3-1. Junior Caroline Halsey had one of the best matches of her time at the 'Ville, recording a career-high 15 kills without a single error. 

Millersville trailed the hosts for most of the first two sets although the first set held quite a few lead changes. The most consequential came with the Marauders up 25-24 with a chance to take the first set. Goldey-Beacom responded with a 3-0 run to claim the 27-25 victory. The hosts also won the second set, putting the Marauders in a 2-0 hole to begin game three. 

An 11-5 deficit was what awaited the visitors in that game, a point at which head coach Brian Smith called a timeout to try and right the ship. His team responded immediately, embarking on a 7-0 run fueled by Lightning hitting errors to take the lead. They would extend that lead to four a few points later and won the set 25-20. Another disadvantage on the scoreboard, this time a 7-1 mark, awaited them in the fourth game. Smith called timeout and his team responded once more with a 7-1 run fueled by three kills from Taylor Welter. The end of the set would differ in outcome from the third, as Goldey-Beacom won it and the match 25-20. 

POSTGAME REACTION FROM BRIAN SMITH: 

• What he attributed the outcome to: "We lost because of poor execution and players only focusing on the skills they deem of higher value. We also passed poorly and had too many hitting errors."

GAME NOTES

• The Marauders suffer their first loss in program history against the Lightning; they had been 9-0 in the series dating back to 2008. It is also the first time since 2009 that these two teams have played on Goldey-Beacom's home court.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• In addition to her 15 kills, Halsey also tallied a service ace and two block assists for a career-best 17 total points. It is the second time in her time at Millersville that she's reached double figures; the other was her previous high-water mark of 11 set on Sept. 1, 2023, against Wilmington.
• The Marauders ended up out-hitting the Lightning and finished with one less block than the hosts (6.0 to 7.0). The only category with a major difference was each team's service errors; Goldey-Beacom had three such mistakes while Millersville had a season-high 15.  

UP NEXT:

• The Marauders look to get back on track when they visit Bloomsburg for a PSAC East clash on Friday, Oct. 6 at 6 p.m.