Chatham University Athletics

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Chatham Women's Volleyball (4-5, 0-1 PAC) earned a 3-0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-17) victory over La Roche (4-6, 1-0 AMCC) in its home opener on Thursday night at the Athletic & Fitness Center. 

The teams traded points early in the opening set before Chatham used consecutive kills from Becca Gesner, Annelese Atkinson and Evie White to build a 7-3 lead. La Roche later scored three straight points to cut the Cougars' advantage to 15-10, but Chatham responded with kills from Maddy Roberts and Gesner to regain control. Roberts recorded back-to-back kills to claim the final two points and secure the opening set. 

Chatham carried that momentum into the second frame, scoring the first four points behind kills from Zoie Bateman, Paige Watson and Gesner. After La Roche pulled within 7-5, the Cougars answered with six consecutive points, including two Bateman kills, to extend their lead to 13-5. Chatham remained in control for the rest of the set, and Roberts finished the 25-13 victory with a kill. 

The third set featured seven ties and five lead changes. La Roche used a 3-0 run to take a 12-10 advantage, but Chatham responded with four straight points, including a Bateman service ace, to move ahead 14-12. After the Redhawks tied the frame at 14, the Cougars took eight of the next 10 points to build a 22-16 lead. Bateman then recorded kills on the final two rallies to close the set 25-17 and complete the sweep. 

Gesner and Bateman tied for the match lead with 10 kills apiece. Gesner hit .529 with just one error on 17 attacks, while Bateman hit .280 and added a service ace. Roberts finished with eight kills and seven digs, and Evie White recorded five kills on a match-best .571 hitting percentage along with Chatham's lone block. 

Kate Giannetta dished out a match-high 17 assists and added two service aces. Delaney Schwind recorded 14 assists and a match-high four aces, while Kelly Dougherty collected a match-high 10 digs and contributed five assists. 

The Cougars outhit La Roche .269 to .072 and held a 41-20 advantage in kills. Chatham also recorded nine service aces while allowing just two. 

The Cougars return to action on Saturday, September 26th when they host West Virginia Wesleyan for their Homecoming match at 1PM at the Athletic & Fitness Center.