FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Volleyball team ended their weekend hosting the Bobcat Invitational by dropping a narrow 3-2 decision to Shippensburg on Saturday.
 
FSU began the match by winning the first five points, as sophomore Devin Brunk joined juniors Paige Mock and Grace Yocham in earning each kill. Eventually facing an 8-3 deficit, SU wasted no time in getting themselves back into the set, rattling off five in a row, helped out by three Bobcat errors to even things at 8-8. Brunk powered a ball down followed by a Mock block with sophomore Emery Kuebler to take a slight 11-9 advantage, but the Raiders matched them every step of the way up to a 13-13 draw. On two occasions, FSU took two-point leads, with Yocham and Brunk leading the attack up to 18-16. Shippensburg took momentum back by scoring four of the next five and six of the next eight to pull ahead 22-20. A pair of SU errors either side of a Mock ace gave Frostburg the lead back, but the final three points went the visitors' way for a 25-23 set win.
 
Brunk and Mock netted the first two points for the Bobcats in the second set, then the latter joined Yocham on a block to lead 3-1. The Raiders swiftly answered back in taking seven of the next points to take an 8-4 advantage. Yocham and graduate Brenna Siperko tried to stop the run on a combo block, but it would be all SU for the rest of the set, as they won seven points in a row and ended the set on a 9-3 run for a 25-11 victory.
 
After the sides played their way to a 4-4 tie, Shippensburg looked to put the match away by winning four of the next five to lead 8-5. Seeking to keep their hopes alive, FSU got the home crowd involved in an electric 9-1 run where Brunk put down a kill and a pair of aces, while Yocham found the floor twice and stuffed the Raiders with Mock on two attacks to pull ahead 16-11. Not wanting to let things get out of hand, SU continuously chipped away at the deficit, getting to within a point before knocking down three in a row and regaining a 21-19 lead. Frostburg was able to dig in and recover, led by Mock and Brunk each going for back-to-back kills then putting up a combo block and the latter ending the set on an ace at 25-22.
 
The Bobcats took a quick 5-2 advantage in the fourth set, as Mock combined with both Yocham and Brunk on blocks while Siperko added a kill. Shippensburg was able to get back within one, but a serving error set the table for FSU to go on a whopping 11-1 run, where Brunk, Siperko, and sophomore Dani Kunkle put up seven total kills in for a commanding 17-5 score. Despite a late Raider run, Frostburg eased their way to an eventual 25-13 set win, as Mock continued her strong offensive day while redshirt senior Phoebe Lingold polished things off with an ace.
 
Having completely swung momentum in their favor, the Bobcats raced out to a 4-0 lead in the winner-take-all fifth set, as Yocham put down three kills while Brunk served up another ace. Shippensburg was eventually able to settle in and flip their fortunes, going for four consecutive points to pull ahead 7-6. A serving error followed by a Kunkle ace gave the lead back to FSU, but it was only for a brief moment as SU netted the final eight points of the match to win the marathon 15-8.
 
Brunk led all scorers with 19 kills to go with four aces, while Mock and Yocham combined for 20 kills and a whopping 18 blocks. Kuebler finished with 36 assists, as Kunkle led the defensive effort with 21 digs.

For their efforts across the tournament, Kunkle and Brunk were each named to the All-Tournament Team. 
 
With the loss, Frostburg drops to 2-4 on the year, while Shippensburg improves to 5-2. FSU next heads to D'Youville for their final early season tournament where they will face Kutztown and Assumption on Friday, September 19 for matches at 3 and 7 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.