10/6/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College women's volleyball squad gets back on the road for the first of three matches in three days with a Thursday night contest at EPAC rival Northampton Community College.
 
The match is set to start at 7:00pm ET in the Arthur L. Scott Spartan Center on the campus of Northampton in Bethlehem, PA. There is a video livestream available via the Northampton Sports Network (HERE) or via the Region 19 Sports Network app on smartphones or tablets.
 
The Falcons met the Spartans earlier this season, with Northampton CC coming away with a 3-0 (25-8, 25-14, 25-14) sweep at the Lackawanna Student Union back on September 17^th. You can read the recap HERE.
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (2-7) comes into the contest after dropping a match with Montgomery County CC, 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-18). The Falcons fought hard, but couldn't quite keep up with the Mustangs. You can read the recap from that match HERE.
 
The Falcons have steadily improved their hitting percentage as the season has gone on, now amassing 152 kills to 133 errors on the year. They average around 5.6 kills per set. Falcon opponents are averaging around .204 in hitting percentage, and score just shy of 9 kills per set. The Falcons have 65 service aces on the season, averaging 2.4 per set, and have 414 digs on the season, a 15.3 digs per set clip.
 
Hunter Heeman (New Milford, PA) has a team-best 69 kills so far this season, and has hit double-digits in kills in four of her last five matches. Heeman has had six or more kills in seven of her nine matches this year. Heeman also has hit double-digit digs in five of her nine matches on the season. Heeman had ten kills on 30 attacks against Montco, providing six digs and a solo block. Against Northampton back in September, Heeman had ten kills on 39 attacks, and provided 14 digs for the Falcons.   
 
Makayla Jones (Weatherford, TX) is second on the team with 30 kills on the season. Jones set a season-high for kills last week, her second straight match doing so, when she went for seven kills against Harcum College. She has also hit double-figures in digs in five of her last seven matches this season. Jones had three kills on 24 attacks against Montco on Tuesday, providing a season-high four assists and 18 digs for the Falcons. Jones had six kills on 27 attacks and 13 digs in the loss to Northampton CC last month.
 
Melanie Pinillos (Miami, FL) is fourth on the team with 14 kills this year, and leads the team with 18 service aces this season. As Pinillos has settled more into her role as libero, her kills have gone down, but her digs have shot up, hitting double-figures in six matches this season, crossing the 20-dig barrier twice. Pinillos had a season-high seven kills in the opener against Lehigh Carbon. Pinillos had a service ace and ten digs in the loss to Montco on Tuesday. Pinillos had an assist and three service aces, along with 14 digs against Northampton CC.
 
Delaney Hollenbeck (Kingsley, PA) has 19 kills so far this season, third on the team, and is tied for second on the team with Heeman, Jones, and Brittney Shaffer (Gratz, PA) at eleven service aces this year. Hollenbeck leads the Falcons with 86 assists this season, crossing double-figures in five matches this season, including her last four appearances. Hollenbeck has hit her season-best with 19 assists in the win at Lehigh Carbon. Hollenbeck was productive against Montco, putting up four kills on eleven attempts, while dishing out 15 assists Hollenbeck had two kills and twelve assists, along with a season-high eleven digs against Northampton CC last month.   
 
The head coach for the Falcons is Shelby Morgan, in her first season at the helm. Morgan previously spent seven seasons as the head coach at Cedar Crest College, where she helped transform the Falcons from a conference basement dweller into a perennial threat, culminating in an NCAA tournament appearance in 2021.
 
About The Opponents
Northampton CC (11-1) has been dominant so far this season, winning eleven straight after dropping their opening match against Harrisburg Area CC this season. The Spartans have dropped just one set during their run, sweeping all their opponents, apart from Penn State Lehigh Valley. The match with Lackawanna will be the third in three days for the Spartans. Northampton's last match came also, coincidentally, came against Montgomery, just this past Wednesday night. The Spartans swept the Mustangs 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-19), and got 15 kills from Jordan Appleton, the only Northampton player in double-figures. Safiya Goodridge added seven kills, while Alexandra Bosco dished out 26 assists. Four different Spartans hit double-digits in digs, and they had eight combined service aces.
 
Appleton is the team leader with 129 kills on the year, averaging around ten kills per match. Appleton is the team-leader among players with 50 or more attacks at .295% this year, and is tied for second on the team with 21 service aces. She's also second on the team with 145 digs on the year. Appleton has hit double-figures in kills in nine matches this season, including ten kills against Lackawanna College. She set a season-high with 17 kills on 44 attempts against Penn State Lehigh Valley. Appleton had 15 kills and eleven digs in the win over Montco on Wednesday. Against Lackawanna, she had her ten kills, plus eleven digs and an assist in the victory.
 
Ayana Bomani is second on the team with 100 kills this season, averaging just over 7.5 kills per match. Bomani leads the Spartans with 34 solo blocks and 42 block assists, good for a total of 76 blocks on the year, and also has the team lead with 185 digs on the year. Bomani is hitting .234 on the year, and is fourth on the team with 16 service aces this season. Bomani had a season-best 17 kills in the win at Lehigh Carbon CC earlier this year, where she hit .652. Bomani set a season-high with eleven blocks at Montco earlier this season, with six solo blocks and five block assists. She had three kills, three service aces, and 15 digs in the win over Montco on Wednesday. Bomani had three kills on 17 attempts and 18 digs against Lackawanna.
 
Goodridge is third on the team with 39 kills this year, going just under 4.5 kills per match this year. Goodridge has been far more productive in her last four matches, amassing 29 kills in four matches, including her season-high of nine kills in 26 attempts against Harcum College. She had three kills in nine attempts against Lackawanna College earlier this season, and had seven kills in 26 attempts, and a season-high six digs, in the win over Montco on Wednesday.
 
Meghan Speshok leads the team with 172 assists on the year, averaging over 13.5 assists per match, and leads the team in service aces with 37 this year. Speshok is fourth on the team with 96 digs. She has seen her production go down with the return of Bosco to the lineup, recording just four assists in her last four matches. She tied a season-high with 16 digs against Ocean County. Speshok set her season-high with 34 assists against Penn State Lehigh Valley, and has crossed the 20-assist barrier six times this season. Speshok had 20 assists, two service aces, and eight digs in the win against Lackawanna College. She had just one assist, one service ace, and ten digs in the win over Montco on Wednesday.
 
Bosco returned to the lineup for the last five matches, and has immediately stepped in as the lead setter, putting up 126 assists in just five matches, second overall behind Speshok, but averaging over 25 assists per match, tops on the team. Bosco has also managed 17 kills in five matches, averaging three kills per match in her return. Bosco is also tied with Appleton for second on the team with 21 service aces this season. She's hit her season-high with four kills on three separate occasions, and also set a season-best with 33 assists against Lehigh Carbon. She had a season-high six service aces against Middlesex College. She did not play against Lackawanna College the first time around, and had three kills and 26 assists in the win over Montco on Wednesday.
 
The head coach for Northampton CC is Rachael Caywood, entering her second year at the helm for the Spartans. Caywood is a local product from Nazareth who played at Northampton CC, a key member of their back-to-back tournament squads in 2015 and 2016. Caywood went 3-10 last season, but had the Spartans finishing strong, winning three of her last five matches to finish the year.   
 
Match Details
The match is set for a 7:00pm ET start on Thursday, October 6^th inside the Arthur L. Scott Spartan Center on the campus of Northampton in Bethlehem, PA. There is a video livestream available via the Northampton Sports Network (HERE) or via the Region 19 Sports Network app on smartphones or tablets.
 
The Falcons continue their road swing on Saturday, October 8^th, when they travel to Delaware for a tri-match with Delaware Tech CC and Cecil College. The Falcons will take on the Terry Hawks from Del Tech first at 11:00am in Newark, DE, and then play the Eagles from Cecil at 1:00pm ET.
 
 
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