YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - The IUPUI volleyball team rallied from a 2-0 hole to capture a 3-2 (25-27, 13-25, 25-20, 25-23, 15-8) road win at Youngstown State on Friday night (Sept. 30). The win brought IUPUI (8-8, 2-2 HL) back to .500 on the season and 2-2 to open Horizon League play. 

"It was great to see the resilience the team displayed tonight. It's really challenging to be down 0-2 and come back to win the next three sets, especially on the road," head coach Lindsey Froehlich said. "They really rallied together after a tough second set and didn't let it rattle their confidence. 

"They took ownership, kept their calm and battled for each point the rest of the match. It was awesome to see so much composure in that fifth set."

Sophomore Briana Brown had 22 kills and 10 digs while hitting .259 and Allie Pogue put down 15 kills to offset a 31-kill night from YSU's Paula Gursching. Sidney Veatch finished with 23 assists and Darragh Dixon had 22 assists and five digs. 

IUPUI got off to a slow start in the opening set, but gained traction and had a 19-14 lead after Morgan Ostrowski put home a kill from Veatch. YSU pulled even at 23 all but IUPUI got to set point after a Brown kill before the Penguins rattled off three straight points for a 27-25 win. In set two, YSU breezed to a 25-13 win to seize control of the match. 

However, IUPUI wouldn't go away and ultimately won set three by a 25-20 count. The third set had six ties and three lead changes, the last of which came at 8-7 as IUPUI rattled off four straight points with Dixon on the service line. The Jags later built a 20-13 lead after Pogue hammered home a a kill before fending off YSU in a 25-20 win. 

The fourth set turned on a dime late in the stanza when an overturned call turned an apparent 21-17 deficit to a 20-18 margin. IUPUI followed with back-to-back points to knot the score at 20 all before Gursching fired home a kill for the hosts to retake the lead. IUPUI reeled off the next four points, the final coming on a Brooke Phillips ace, to take a 24-21 lead. YSU threatened before Veatch terminated the set with a nifty kill to send the match to five. 

The fifth set lacked much drama as IUPUI scored the first eight points with Emma Ashcraft on the service line. IUPUI got kills from Corrissa Remter, Millai Madison and Brown, forcing two YSU timeouts before the run was halted. The Penguins closed within five points on two different occasions before IUPUI sealed the set, 15-8. 

Offensively, IUPUI warmed up over the course of the evening to finish at .212 and limited YSU runs in the final three sets, getting sideouts at opportune times. 

The win was IUPUI's first Horizon League road victory since winning at Youngstown by a similar 3-2 score in November 2019. 

IUPUI will continue the two-game trip on Saturday (Oct. 1) when the Jaguars face Robert Morris at 4:00 p.m. on ESPN+.