Campus News
November 3rd, 2026
GC reaches region quarters before loss to PSC
Lady Lakers sweep ACM to earn spot in Region 20 Elite Eight
McHenry, MD – Near. Total. Domination.
That pretty much sums up eighth-seeded Garrett College’s three-set sweep of ninth-seeded Allegany College of Maryland in last Tuesday night’s NJCAA Division II Region 20 play-in. GC blew through the first two sets and then finished the match on a 10-4 scoring binge to secure a 25-11, 25-13, 25-23 win over the Trojans (8-9).
GC’s playoff push ended Saturday with a 25-11, 25-19, 25-14 quarterfinal loss to top-seeded WVU Potomac State College. That setback, however, didn’t dull the shine of eliminating the Lady Lakers’ local rivals in the play-in round.
“They came out ready to play even more than I realized,” first-year head coach Beth Campbell said after her squad swept the Trojans. “We’ve had some rough practices and the girls really came together. They basically said, ‘We’re not going to let anything keep us from doing what we set out to do.’ ”
GC (10-8) reached the region quarterfinals for the second time in three years led by freshman hitter Kyla Gilbert, who had match-highs in kills (nine) and digs (12) versus ACM.
“We wanted to win it for our two teammates out with injuries,” said Gilbert, referencing injured freshmen Isabella Keneally and Shayla Thomas. “We just pushed as a team to get it for them.”
The Trojans, who have a stable of impressive hitters, couldn’t get their offense going in the first two sets. ACM had 11 attempted kills go long in the first two sets, including eight in the opener.
“They seemed like they were a little nervous – which we capitalized on a lot,” said Campbell. “They loosened up about the middle of the second set, and that’s when we started to have some problems.”
“They weren’t as aggressive as they were last time,” added Gilbert, referring to GC’s taut, four-set win over the Trojans in the regular season.
Lady Laker reserve Bre Boyer served nine straight points to help the hosts build a 12-2 cushion in the opening set. Garrett took control of the second set with a 10-3 run – featuring two Gilbert kills along with a kill and a service ace from Mia Barrios (eight kills, 10 digs) – that gave the Lady Lakers a 20-8 cushion.
After two laser-focused sets, the Lady Lakers seemed to take their foot off the gas in the third set as ACM built a 19-15 lead.
“I think we were giggling around a little too much,” said Gilbert of how her team started the third set.
“It’s real hard when you win the first two sets by that much to stay focused,” said Campbell. “We totally lost focus, but we hung around long enough to get it close until we got our focus back. Then we played our brand of volleyball at the end.”
Indeed they did. Gilbert recorded three kills and Olivia Bartlett had an impressive middle kill during the match-ending, 10-4 run.
ACM took a 23-22 lead on Chloe DeBlock’s kill, but Trojan Carly Sowers netted a serve to create a 23-23 tie. Gilbert and Barrios then put down consecutive kills to close out the match.
Teyla Holloway-Powers had a match-high 16 assists while Bartlett added four kills for GC. Lady Laker Madison Sypolt contributed three kills.
PSC 3, Garrett 0
North East, MD – The appropriately named Ashton Spiker and Livia Prusa each had 10 kills Saturday morning as the top-seeded Catamounts improved to 18-1.
Taea Moeai had a match-high 38 assists and added eight digs for Potomac State. Delaney Randolph finished with nine kills and a team-high 11 digs for PSC.
Kyla Gilbert recorded a match-high 13 kills to go along with 11 digs for Garrett. Lady Laker Teyla Holloway-Powers finished with a team-high 19 assists, a match-high 15 digs, and three kills. GC’s Mia Barrios contributed four kills.