CRESSON, Pa. - The Mount Aloysius College women's volleyball team opened its 2026 season with a thrilling five-set battle against Geneva on Tuesday evening, rallying from a two-set deficit before ultimately falling 3-2 (12-25, 19-25, 25-20, 25-16, 13-15) in its home opener at the Athletic Convocation & Wellness Center.
After dropping the opening two sets, the Mounties showed tremendous resilience, taking control of the match in the third and fourth sets to force a decisive fifth.
Geneva took the first set, 25-12, before claiming the second, 25-19, to take a 2-0 advantage.
Facing the deficit, Mount Aloysius responded with its strongest stretch of the night.
The Mounties jumped out to a strong start in the third set and maintained their momentum throughout, earning a 25-20 victory. Mount Aloysius carried that energy into the fourth, racing to a 25-16 win to even the match at 2-2 and send the contest to a winner-take-all fifth set.
The decisive frame lived up to the drama of the first four, with both teams battling point-for-point. Geneva ultimately edged the Mounties, 15-13, to escape with the five-set victory.
Mackenzie Barr (Pittsburgh, Pa., Shaler) led the Mount Aloysius attack with a match-high 17 kills, while Sarah Iman (Purgitsville, W.V., Moorefield) added seven kills and Kyler Freeman (Lucinda, Pa., North Clarion) contributed four.
At the service line, Madison Barr (Pittsburgh, Pa., Shaler), Maya McIlwain (Rural Valley, Pa, West Shamokin) and Kiersten Cummings (Las Vegas, Nev, Nevada State) each recorded three aces.
The Mounties also received a strong defensive effort from Madison Barr (Pittsburgh, Pa., Shaler), who recorded a match-high 31 digs. Reghyn Wilson (Harrisburg, Pa., Bishop McDevitt) added 15 digs, while McIlwain contributed 13.
Wilson paced the Mounties' offense with 16 assists, while Cummings added 14 assists. At the net, Loren Stipanovich (Cresson, Pa, Penn Cambria) led Mount Aloysius with four blocks, followed by Freeman with three.
As a team, Mount Aloysius finished with 40 kills, 12 aces, six blocks, 39 assists and 81 digs.
The Mounties will look to carry the momentum from Tuesday's battle into the weekend when they travel to Rocky Mount, N.C., for the North Carolina Wesleyan Invitational.
Mount Aloysius will face Randolph at 9 a.m. on Friday, before returning to the court later that afternoon against Mary Baldwin at 1 p.m.
#GoMounties
