COLUMBUS, OH - Toledo overcame a slow start against Youngstown State this evening in the Sports Imports Classic at St. John Arena but the Rockets still came up short in a 3-2 (14-25, 24-26, 25-23, 25-22, 12-15) defeat to the Penguins. The loss leaves UT with a 0-2 mark, while YSU evens it record at 1-1.

Freshman Amber DeWeerdt paced the Rockets' attack with 15 kills, while junior Stephanie Kersting also reached double figures with 14 terminations.

Senior Lori Ruth was one of two Rockets to register double-figure dig totals with 14. Freshman Kassie Kadera also paced UT with 50 assists and a pair of service aces.

"We got off to a slow start but started to compete well in the second set and that carried over to our wins in the third and fourth set," Toledo Head Coach Kent Miller said. "We just had some unfortunate errors in the final set and let things slip away from us."

Ruth Boscaljon was the leader of the Penguins' offense with a match-high 22 kills, as YSU was able to outhit the Midnight Blue and Gold by a .266-.153 margin. Tasha Reid and Haley Kapferer were key parts of the Penguins' defensive presence at the net with six block assists apiece.

The Rockets will look to rebound from today's disappointing results with a single match tomorrow against Xavier at 8:00 p.m.