Middletown, Pa. – History has been made. The St. Mary's College of Maryland women's volleyball team captured its first-ever United East Conference Championship on Saturday afternoon, rallying past top-seeded Penn State Harrisburg in a dramatic 3–2 victory (19–25, 13–25, 25–20, 25–21, 15–6) at the Capital Union Building.
After dropping the first two sets, the Seahawks (17–14) stormed back with grit and poise, winning three straight frames to stun the Nittany Lions (21–7) and lift the trophy for the first time in program history.
Sanaa Porter delivered a championship-worthy performance, finishing with a team-high 12 kills, a .280 hitting percentage, and two blocks, sparking the comeback effort. Maya Mauro followed closely with 11 kills, one ace, seven digs, and a block, while Julia Bobrowski added 10 kills, two aces, and two blocks in a steady all-around performance.
The Seahawks' front line stepped up in the pivotal moments, with Faith Shockley contributing five kills and two blocks and Hope Parrish adding two solo blocks to help shift momentum midway through the match.
Setters Camilla Galeano and Arielle Lubeck ran a balanced, resilient offense throughout the five sets. Galeano totaled 22 assists, 12 digs, and three aces, while Lubeck added 17 assists and seven digs. Stella Marrero anchored the backcourt with 15 digs, and Elizabeth Childs added eight digs and strong serve-receive play.
St. Mary's struggled offensively in the first two sets but flipped the script as the match progressed. The Seahawks hit .212 in Set 4 and a blistering .700 in the final set, committing zero errors in the deciding frame. The defense also tightened, holding Harrisburg to a .071 hitting percentage in the fifth.
In the winner-take-all set, the Seahawks exploded to an early lead behind kills from Porter and Mauro, while Bobrowski's blocking and Costenco's serving fueled an 8–1 run. St. Mary's never looked back, closing out the championship with a 15–6 finish.
With the victory, St. Mary's claims its first United East title and earned their first ever automatic bid to the 2025 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship.
