CPC volleyball defeats HACC

The Central Penn Knights (3-6 overall) fought back from being down 2-0 against HACC to win in dramatic fashion last night.

After a 3-0 victory against Baltimore City Community College on Wednesday, the Lady Knights traveled to cross-river rival HACC (6-2 overall) Thursday evening for a nonconference matchup.

HACC grabbed the first two sets and Central Penn quickly found themselves in a tough spot.

The Lady Knights came out of the gates slowly in the third game, going down 71before beginning to climb back into the match. The two teams remained close until Central Penn was finally able to edge ahead to win the third set.

The momentum carried the Lady Knights into the fourth set as they quickly grabbed a 103 lead. Smart attacks and well-placed serves continued to give HACC trouble. Central Penn won and forced a fifth and deciding set.

The fifth set remained close throughout with great effort being put forth on long rallies by both teams. The Knights continued to attack from the middle of the court as Danielle Crone (New Oxford, Pa.) tallied a career high 18 kills. At 14-13, HACC served into the net and Central Penn completed an improbable comeback.

"It was a very exciting game," says Head Coach Jason Barshinger. "There's no other way to put it. We were down but we never gave up and we never stopped fighting. We went up against a tough team that is doing very well in the EPAC, so we knew it would take everything. I'm very proud of our focus and intensity."

Crone also contributed six digs, one ace and one block. Janay Nelson (Clinton, Md.) had 12 kills, seven digs and one ace. Bachelle Upshur (Brooklyn, N.Y.) added six kills, three aces and four blocks. Alexa Christman (New Holland, Pa.) tallied four aces and two digs and a career-high 23 assists.

"We're beginning to prove to ourselves just how good we are," says Barshinger. "We played some very tough USCAA and NCAA DIII teams recently. The fight this team shows is impressive. We're ready for any challenges ahead of us."

The Lady Knights travel next to North Carolina for USCAA conference games against Mid-Atlantic Christian University and Johnson & Wales University - Charlotte. Both games will be held Saturday, September 20.