The Shippensburg University volleyball team bounced back from a tough loss with a four-set win over Kutztown on the road at Keystone Arena on Saturday afternoon. Set scores were 25-19, 25-22, 14-25 and 25-7.
 
Following a dip in performance to drop the third set, the Raiders responded with a dominant fourth set (nine kills and one error) to hold the Golden Bears to just seven points in the frame. It is the fewest points SU has allowed to an opponent in a set in a decade.
 
Three Raiders achieved double-digit kills for the day. Junior Emily Gardner posted the team high of 11 kills along with 12 digs for her seventh double-double of the season; she added three blocks. Senior Kaitlyn Townsend and junior Maddie Clabaugh recorded 10 kills each. Townsend swung .333 and added four blocks to lead the defense while Clabaugh contributed eight digs and two service aces.
 
Sophomore Kearstin Davis put in another solid performance at the setter position, contributing 34 assists and 10 digs for her 11th double-double of the year.
 
Senior Jackie Sterenberg and freshman Shay Kolivoski also got into double-digit digs with 12 and 10, respectively. Kolivoski was additionally strong on serve with four aces, as was senior Kat Negron who matched her season high of five aces.
 
Shippensburg maintained control for the majority of the first set, grabbing the lead at 8-7 and never looking back. Kutztown remained in striking distance at 21-19, but the Raiders scored the next four straight points thanks to a pair of kills from freshman Gracen Nutt and two aces from Kolivoski.
 
SU came out with continued momentum in the second set and built an 18-11 lead. The Golden Bears countered with an 8-1 run to bring the score within one point, but a kill from Townsend and another ace from Kolivoski allowed the Raiders to pull away once more. An ace from Clabaugh created a set point and Davis followed through with a kill to cap the frame, 25-22.
 
The third set saw SU facing an improved Kutztown attack as the Golden Bears swung .367 with 13 kills and just two errors. The Raiders fell to an initial 11-5 deficit and could not find their way back into the set.
 
A reenergized Shippensburg completely monopolized the scoring in the fourth set. The Raiders swung .320 and capitalized on 10 Kutztown errors to quickly run up the score to 24-4. The Golden Bears saved three match points, but freshman Hailey Cappleman sealed the conference victory with a kill.
 
Kutztown was led by 16 kills from Sadie Doss on a .174 hitting percentage; Julia Post paced the defense with eight blocks.
 
The Raiders return home on Friday to host West Chester at 7 p.m. at Heiges Field House.