WHEELING, W.Va. – The West Virginia State University volleyball team came up short against Urbana, 3-1, in the semifinal of the Mountain East Conference Championship on Friday night. This was West Virginia State's first appearance in the semifinals of the MEC Tournament since joining the league in 2013.

Sophomore outside hitter Jenna Dufresne posted 13 kills and one service ace to reach a team-high 14 points in the match. Sophomore Gabrielle Thompson made her presence known with three block solos and five block assists.  She also registered six kills on 13 total attempts for a .462 hitting percentage.

In the first set, the Yellow Jackets were better out of the gates. They went ahead 15-9 before the Blue Knights rallied back. Urbana finished strong and took the set, 25-22.

The Blue Knights continued their run in the second set. They were able to capture it by 11 points, 25-14.

West Virginia State absolutely dominated Urbana in the third set. The Yellow Jackets went up by as much as 15 points on two separate occasions during the set.  Thompson leaped above the net and rejected an attack from the Blue Knights to cap off the dominant performance, 25-11.

Urbana was able to regain its composure for the fourth set. The Blue Knights jumped out to a 10-2 lead early on. West Virginia State fought back to get within two points of UU, 10-8, but couldn't completely close the gap. Urbana claimed the final set by 10 points, 25-15.

Hitting percentages by both squads were exactly the same at 16.4 percent. WVSU committed fewer errors than Urbana, 19 as opposed to 24.

While the young Yellow Jackets were disappointed by missing out on a title shot, all was not lost after the 2019 season concluded. They finished the regular season tied for second in the league standings and won ten consecutive games at one point during the year.

Throughout the 2019 season, different players have grown into their respective roles and improved individually as well as collectively. The current sophomores and juniors on the team will become the first contingent of upperclassmen to lead the squad next season.

Every year has marked progress since Head Coach Kris Kern took over three seasons ago. There is no question that this team will only continue to get better.