SIOUX CITY, IOWA – The York University volleyball team split a pair of matches at the Siouxland Invitational. After falling 3-0 to Dakota State Friday morning, the squad bounced back to knock off Haskell Indian Nations University 3-1.

The Panthers are now 3-3 on the young season.

Head coach Irick Gardner's team was led by Avery Schneider's eight kills. Brianna Lemke added seven kills while Kaylee Weigel chipped in six kills in the loss.

Mariah Janda dished out 17 assists and had an ace. Kensey Clifton distributed nine assists in the contest. 

Defensively, Ronan Merriex and Weigel had a solo block apiece. Cassie Richardson led the back line with 15 digs. Clifton and Janda had seven digs each.  

Against Dakota State, York trailed 11-8 before Merriex slammed home a kill in the first set. A point from Kenna Tarnowski pulled the designated visitors within three at 15-12, but Dakota State pulled away for the 25-15 win.

The second set saw York take a 5-0 lead. Aubrey Bostick started things off with a kill and Schneider followed it up. After an error by the home team, Lemke found the court for a kill. Janda served up an ace for the five-point edge. 

An ace from Ambar Ortiz stretched the margin to six, 8-2, but an 8-2 run by Dakota State knotted the score at 10-10. Down 21-15, an error and a block from Weigel made it a 21-17 contest. However, that was as close as the Panthers could get the rest of the way.

York trailed 9-1 in the third frame but Lemke and Schneider got things going with back-to-back kills. The home squad managed to keep the Panthers at bay en route to the 25-9 victory. 

In the nightcap against Haskell Indian Nations University, Lemke led the way with 14 kills while Schneider added 10. Weigel and Tarnowski chipped in eight and six kills, respectively.

Janda led the offense with 21 assists and Clifton managed 17 in the victory. Valentina Jimenez served up two aces in the win.   

Defensively, Merriex had four total blocks. Richardson accounted for 20 digs while Jimenez and Janda garnered 10 digs apiece.

York trailed 12-8 in the opening set but a block by Aubrey Bostick and Merriex started a run by the visitors. Two plays later, Lemke and Merriex combined for a block, pulling within one. A miscue by the home team, a kill by Schneider and another error gave the Panthers a 14-12 edge. Leading 16-15, Schneider and Weigel had back-to-back points for a three-point margin. Up 20-17, Weigel started a 3-0 spurt with a kill. Elena Brown and Weigel notched points for a 23-17 advantage. With the score at 24-21, Lemke finished the set with a thunderous kill.

A quick 4-0 spurt early in the second stanza made it 4-1 in favor of York. Lemke recorded a solo block before Schneider found the court with a kill. Lemke had a kill and Bostick served up an ace for the three-point lead. Moments later, a Jimenez ace pushed the score to 7-2. Leding 10-16, Florencia Felmer garnered a kill. An error made it 12-6. With the score at 12-7, the Panthers embarked on a 6-2 run to break open the contest. The Panthers closed it out with a 3-0 run. Janda had an ace while Bostick and Merriex combined for the final point via a block in the 10-point win.   

After dropping the third set, York bounced back to clinch the fourth frame 25-19. The back-and-forth affair was tied at 17-17. Three straight errors by the home team and a kill from Lemke made it a four-point advantage in favor of the Panthers. Up 22-19, Lemke stopped a brief run with a kill. Tarnowski and Lemke notched back-to-back points to finish off the victory.

The Panthers return to action tomorrow for matches against Cottey College (11:30 a.m.) and Morningside (4:30 p.m.). Live stats will be available at Yorkpanthers.com.