SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — York lost to Evangel 3-1 (22-25, 20-25, 26-24, 11-25) on Saturday. The Panthers produced their top attacking set in the third with 15 kills and a .189 hitting percentage, but finished at .104 for the match while Evangel hit .236.
York's main push in the first set came after Evangel led 18-12, with
Maria Del Mar Rivera and
Jassania Joseph recording kills,
Florencia Felmer and Joseph adding service aces, and blocks by
Madilyn De La Garza and
Isidora Diaz Aguirre helping the Panthers get within 21-20. Earlier, York had also cut a 9-4 deficit to 10-9 during a stretch that included a
Leyra Ruiz kill and a Joseph ace. Evangel held off the comeback and took the set 25-22.
The Panthers' clearest push came after Evangel moved ahead 12-5, when
Kory Anschutz assisted kills from Joseph, Ruiz and De La Garza to bring York to 12-8. The Panthers added late kills from Ruiz and
Gabriella Ayazo to reach 19-23, but Evangel closed out the set 25-20.
York erased a 19-15 deficit by winning seven of eight rallies, with
Valentina Jimenez serving two aces and Diaz Aguirre adding three kills during the push to a 22-20 lead. Evangel later tied the set at 24-24, but the Panthers closed it with back-to-back points on Evangel errors to take the third set 26-24.
The fourth set moved away from York after a 9-9 score, as Evangel scored the next 13 points to go ahead 22-9. Earlier, Ruiz had helped the Panthers move in front with kills for 7-5 and 8-7, both set up by Anschutz. Diaz Aguirre recorded York's final two kills, but Evangel finished the set 25-11.
Diaz Aguirre led the Panthers with 10.5 points, tied for the team high with nine kills, hit .350 and added two blocks. Jimenez finished with 19 digs and two service aces.
Ambar Ortiz also collected 19 digs and added one ace. Anschutz recorded a team-high 18 assists and added three digs.
Up next, York hosts Bethany on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available on yorkpanthers.com.
