EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – Maddie Mitchell led the way with 18 kills as Lock Haven (16-6, 8-2 PSAC) toppled East Stroudsburg (15-8, 8-3 PSAC) by a 3-2 tally on Saturday afternoon at Koehler Fieldhouse in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) women's volleyball showdown.
 
With the win, the Bald Eagles secured a spot in the PSAC Volleyball Championships for the first time since the 2023 campaign. The victory also wrapped up a season sweep of East Stroudsburg for the Bald Eagles.
 
The Warriors took the opening set by a 25-21 score. ESU led most of the way, and Lock Haven pulled even at 19-19 before the Warriors closed the set out to take a 1-0 lead.
 
Lock Haven answered in the second set, hitting .448 with one attack error to win, 25-19.
 
The Bald Eagles built a 13-3 lead in the third stanza before holding on by a 25-22 tally after ESU closed the gap late in the set.
 
ESU forced a fifth set with a 25-19 win in the fourth.
 
The deciding set was not close. Lock Haven opened a 6-3 lead, pushed it to 10-5 and won 15-7. Payton Stanton closed out the win with blocks on the match's final two points.
 
Stanton added 11 kills and Avery Smith chipped in nine in the win. Olivia Taylor finished with 33 digs to surpass 500 digs on the year. Gracelynn Wolzen reached 500 career kills with her nine in the contest.
 
Natalie Gibson had 49 assists and 10 digs for Lock Haven, which finished with 10 team blocks and 10 aces. Taylor had four of the aces to lead the way for The Haven.
 
Up Next :
The Bald Eagles are back in action on Tuesday when they visit Millersville. Opening serve is set for 6 p.m.