The Pitt-Johnstown volleyball team opened its 2026 season with a hard-fought four-set battle against Lewis (Ill.) at the D'Youville University Tournament, falling 3-1 (28-26, 16-25, 22-25, 24-26) on Friday morning at the Saints Center Gym. The Mountain Cats jumped out to a set-one win before Lewis rallied to take the next three, dropping Pitt-Johnstown to 0-1 on the young season.
Despite the setback, the Mountain Cats showed plenty of fight in their season debut, with several newcomers and returners stepping up in front of an early-morning crowd of 85.
Junior Ellie Zuro Cirino paced the offense with a team-high 12 kills to go with 8 digs and a service ace, providing steady firepower on the outside all afternoon. Caroline Knight was right behind her with 11 kills, a match-high-tying 15 digs, and a block solo, turning in an all-around effort on both sides of the net. Kiara Harmon rounded out the attacking trio with 10 kills on a sharp .444 hitting percentage, adding 2 service aces and a block solo for good measure.
Setter Abby Berry ran the Mountain Cat offense efficiently, dishing out 23 assists while also chipping in 5 digs, and Arielis Valle Villegas added 17 assists of her own off the bench. Defensively, Avery Koontz matched Knight's 15 digs to anchor the back row, while Brooke Pelloni and Dannika Susko each contributed a block solo up front.
Statistically, the two teams were evenly matched in several categories — Pitt-Johnstown actually edged Lewis in digs, 60 to 59, and were within two kills of the Flyers' offensive output, 47 to 49. Where Lewis pulled ahead was at the service line and net, out-acing the Mountain Cats 12-5 and out-blocking them 10-5, margins that proved costly in the second, third and fourth sets.
The opener was a back-and-forth battle from the start, with Pitt-Johnstown trading points with Lewis deep into the frame before pulling away late for a 28-26 win, fueled by timely kills from Zuro Cirino and Harmon down the stretch. The Mountain Cats couldn't carry that momentum into set two, however, as Lewis used a strong middle stretch to build a comfortable cushion and take the frame, 25-16. Set three saw Pitt-Johnstown claw back from an early deficit behind kills from Knight and Harmon, pulling within two points late, but Lewis closed it out at 25-22. The fourth set was the tightest of the match, with the two sides trading the lead deep into the twenties before Lewis narrowly prevailed, 26-24, to seal the match.
Lewis was led by Marin Grossman, who tallied a match-high 15 kills, while Hannah Dietzenbach and Kaileigh Krawiec paced the Flyers defensively with 8 blocks and 18 assists, respectively. The win moved Lewis to 1-0 on the season.
Pitt-Johnstown returns to action later Friday when it faces Kutztown University at 4 p.m. as tournament play continues in Buffalo, N.Y.
