SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Shippensburg University volleyball team rallied from a 2-1 deficit Tuesday night to hand visiting Shepherd its first loss of the season, moving atop the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Southeast Division with a 3-2 victory by scores of 25-23, 23-25, 20-25, 25-18 and 15-7 from Heiges Field House.
 
Shippensburg (15-3, 7-0 PSAC) limited Shepherd (18-1, 6-1) to a .036 hitting percentage of the final two sets while hitting .263 over the same span. The Raiders swung .240 for the match, its third time hitting over .200 against a PSAC opponent, and had 25 points decided at the service line.
 
In the decisive fifth set, Shippensburg raced out to a 6-1 lead and never looked back – not trailing by any more than four points in the final frame. The Raiders swung .348 in the fifth set, crushing 10 kills compared to just three for the Rams.
 
Senior Kendall Johnson led the Raiders offensively with 17 kills and a splendid .412 hitting efficiency on 34 swings. Johnson also had three blocks, including the fourth-set clinching solo block.
 
Senior Gabriella Johnson, the reigning PSAC Southeast Division Athlete of the Week, ripped her fifth straight double-double with 16 kills and 17 digs while swinging .167. She sealed the match for the Raiders with the final kill of the match in the fifth set.
 
Senior Samantha Webber slammed 12 kills and hit an efficient .290, while junior Gianna Sigado neared a double-double with nine kills and nine digs on the night. Junior Alana Pergine had six kills and hit .211.
 
Junior setter Emily Hangen once again had an excellent night, totaling 53 assists and leading the squad with 21 digs. It is Hangen's fourth 50-assist outing of the season and the 11th such performance of her career.
 
Senior Megan Forstburg served a career-high six aces on the night and contributed 16 digs to the cause. She also had a key five-point service run in the fifth set that propelled the Raiders to a 6-1 lead in the frame.
 
Redshirt-freshman Syera McCormick added a career-high 18 digs on the night – marking her fifth-straight double-digit dig effort and her 10th overall of the season.
 
Shippensburg will play three home games over three days this weekend, beginning at 7 p.m. Friday against Gannon.