PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Chatham Women's Volleyball (12-3, 7-1 PAC) withstood a comeback by Westminster (12-8, 4-4) to get a victory on Saturday afternoon at the Athletic and Fitness Center by a 3-2 (25-20, 25-19, 23-25, 24-26, 15-6) scoreline.
 
The Cougars enjoyed an 11-6 advantage to begin the first set before the Titans clawed back to get within 21-19. Then, a Paige Watson kill and Sierra Ricci service ace closed a set win for Chatham. The second set was tightly contested, and the Cougars once again led 21-19. That's when Chatham won 4 consecutive points, including two kills from Becca Gesner to attain a 2-0 match lead. Westminster took seven straight points after the Cougars held a 17-16 advantage in that frame, and would take the set despite Chatham using a couple of Annika Solfronk kills to get within 24-23. When a Gesner service ace in set four put the Cougars up 21-18, capping a 5-0 run, it appeared as though Chatham had the match won. The Titans had other plans, however, erasing a 24-21 deficit to even the match. The Cougars were able to shake off the set loss by winning the first 12 points of the winner-take-all final set, propelled by three aces from Delaney Schwind. A Gesner kill wrapped up the seventh PAC victory for Chatham in eight matches.
 
Gesner was the Cougars' kill leader, recording a match-high 16 along with 9 digs and 3 aces.  Paige Watson was just behind with 15 kills on .333 hitting and 3 blocks. Vanessa Mleczko had a double-double for Chatham with 14 kills and 12 digs, also adding 3 aces from the service line. Delaney Schwind tallied a match-most 30 assists and 6 aces for the Cougars, whose 15 aces were their third-highest total of the season. Chatham's .202 attacking percentage was its second highest in conference play.
 
Sierra Ricci once again anchored the Cougar defense, recording a career-high 49 digs. That's the most by a PAC player this season, and ninth-most for a single match in PAC history. Her total was also the second-most in Chatham program history, one shy of Meghan Dominek's 50 on Nov. 1, 2022.
 
The Cougars are back on the court Tuesday at Franciscan's Finnegan Fieldhouse, with first serve schedule for 7 p.m.