ATHERTON, Calif— The William Jessup Volleyball team hit the road to take on Menlo College and the Warriors pulled out a thrilling win in an epic five-set battle over the Oaks, winning 25-18, 25-21, 23-25, 23-25, & 15-9. The Warriors record now stands at 10-9 on the season and 7-5 in the GSAC. 
 
In the opening set, the Warriors got off to a hot start as they scored the opening four points. The lead quickly evaporated as Jessup was down 8-10 after an early Oaks run. Despite the scoring run by their opponent, the Warriors remained unphased as they successfully rallied back to regain the lead, 12-11. Similar to the start of the set, the Warriors caught fire as a team and would score the final four points to claim set one, 25-18. 
 
The red-hot Warriors would build off a successful first set and jump out to a 7-3 lead in the second frame. Even though it was another quick start, the run faded and the Warriors were down 12-18. Another scoring run was put together by the Warriors and in the blink of an eye, the scoreboard read 20-19 in favor of Jessup. The set was capped off with an Alicia Borges kill and the Warriors had a 2-0 lead after winning 25-21.
 
During the third set, the Warriors trailed 10-15 midway through but would rally back, bringing the set within one point, 23-24. The late run would fizzle out and the Warriors lost their first set, 23-25. 
 
After trailing 10-18 in set four, the Warriors would not go down without a fight as they clawed their way back yet again as they trailed 23-24 for the second consecutive time. The match would ultimately get extended to another set as Jessup lost 23-25.
 
As the final set commenced, the Warriors held an early advantage, 8-6, as the teams switched sides. The change in direction didn't impact the Warriors as they snagged two more points in succession as they lead 10-6. The set and match would eventually be finished off by Vendela Williams as she blasted the ball on the Oaks side of the net to end the night, giving the Warriors their third straight win by claiming set five 15-9. 

After the match, Williams was elated to help her team win, as she said, "It felt so good to get that last kill in the five-set battle!" She also noted the rambunctious atmosphere, saying, "We feed off of the energy of crowds like that." Williams concluded by saying, " We're finally getting to show everyone in our conference what we can do and I'm so excited to do it again." 
 
Head coach Tiger Shelton spoke highly of his team as he said, "Everybody played well and came and committed while playing their hearts out." He continued on by saying, "They deserve that win, they took it from them." Shelton finished by echoing the 2019-2020 Jessup Athletics motto, "WE ARE WARRIORS!"
 
Williams along with Taylor Jacky had team high's in kills each with 19. Jessica Williams led the team in assists with 32 and Brianne Whitt ended with 24 of her own on the night. Defensively, the Warriors played great as Kacey Berger led with 27 digs, Madison Marlow finished with 21 while Jacky had 17 and Alicia Borges and J.  Williams each tallied 15. From the service line, the Warriors made their mark with 9 aces as a team and three of those coming from Jessica Williams. 
 
The Warriors next two contests will be played on the road as they take on Arizona Christian University and Ottawa University on October 25 and 26 before returning home to take on Westmont College on November 1. 
  William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat).