Penn volleyball started off the Sonesta Philadelphia Rittenhouse Square Penn Invitational on Saturday with two strong victories but ended with a tough loss in its final match.
The Quakers swept Manhattan on Friday and Le Moyne College on Saturday morning but lost in straight sets to Morgan State University in the evening, leaving the tournament with a 4-3 record on the season.
In the first match against Manhattan (1-8), Penn (4-3) won with set scores of 25-23, 25-17, and 25-12. The next morning, the Red and Blue dominated Le Moyne (1-5) with set scores of 25-14, 25-17, and 25-19. However, the Quakers’ momentum didn’t carry into the evening match against Morgan State (3-8), where they dropped all three sets 25-21, 25-14, and 25-22.
Sophomore right-side hitter Bella Rittenberg and freshman middle-blocker Adell Murray were standouts for the Red and Blue and were both named to the all-tournament team.
Murray had a stellar performance throughout the day, hitting .428 with 16 kills and only four errors on 28 attacks. She led Penn in the evening match with a team-high nine kills. Rittenberg also shone, collecting 13 kills for the day with a .367 hitting percentage. She hit .400 in the loss to Morgan State, registering six kills without an error on 15 attacks.
When asked how she keeps her motivation up throughout the game, Rittenberg stated, “Volleyball is my passion, so it’s easy to keep going and keep my energy up. I’m doing it for my team, so that gives me the energy and momentum to keep going.”
Sophomore outside hitter Zada Sanger led the Quakers in kills during the win over Le Moyne, notching eight on 18 attacks for an impressive .444 hitting percentage. Rittenberg, Murray, junior middle-blocker Jalen Tennyson, and freshman outside hitter Jenna Garner each contributed seven kills in the sweep. Tennyson also dominated defensively with eight blocks, five of which came in the first set against Le Moyne.
Freshman setter Emery Moore facilitated the Quakers offense, tallying 40 assists across the two matches, while junior setter Anna Shohfi added 14 assists and led the team with 10 digs in the Le Moyne match.
In the evening, Penn struggled to gain traction against a Morgan State team that had just completed a grueling five-set win over Manhattan earlier in the day. The Bears jumped out to an early 9-3 lead in the first set, forcing Penn to call a timeout.
Although the Quakers fought back to within one point at 19-18, Morgan State pulled away late, securing the set 25-21.
The second set saw a dominant 10-point run from the Bears, who turned a 5-4 deficit into a commanding 14-5 lead. Penn was unable to recover, dropping the set 25-14 despite a strong showing from Murray, who recorded four kills on five attacks.
Penn put up a stronger fight in the third set, leading by as many as four points on two occasions. However, Morgan State went on a late 6-1 run, reclaiming the lead at 18-17. The Quakers managed to regain the advantage at 20-19, but the Bears closed out the match with a 4-0 run, winning the set 25-22 and sealing the match.
Rittenberg and Murray combined for seven kills in the final set, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Morgan State’s late surge.
However, despite the loss, the team’s morale stayed strong and ready for the next match.
“The goal for us is to find our confidence early so that when we get into Ivies, we can challenge a lot more than we have in the past,” coach Meredith Schamun said. “I think we were challenged, which I appreciate because we will continue to be challenged. Next time we meet this, I’m confident we’ll have a better response.”
The Quakers will travel to NJIT on Sept. 17 to face the Highlanders at 6 p.m. They’ll return home on Sept. 22 to take on the University of Rhode Island at 1 p.m.
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