COLUMBUS, Ohio - University of Southern Indiana Volleyball took down Winthrop University in a five-set thriller on Sunday afternoon inside the Covelli Center to close out the Sports Imports Classic at Ohio State University.
 
Today's match marks the first five-set challenge of the 2026 season, as the Screaming Eagles finish the weekend 2-1 and move to 4-6 overall this season.  
 
The Screaming Eagles came out strong against Winthrop, tallying three blocks as a team to help slow down the WU offense. Senior Leah Coleman led the team with four kills, as senior Ashby Willis and sophomore Carley Wright followed behind with three each. Willis also led the defense with seven digs.
 
USI put up a fight in the second but was overpowered by the Winthrop offense who hit a match-high .312 efficiency.  Sophomore setter Aysa Thomas dished out a balanced offense with 10 assists and two kills of her own. Freshman Aubrey Fair was ready when her name was called, coming off the bench to tally three kills.
 
The third set was a battle for the lead with 12 tie scores as the frame went into extra points at the end. Wright led the USI offense with five kills, Willis was behind her with four, and Fair tallied another three from the outside. Freshman Vita Sensenbrenner hit the court for the first time in her career to put up three blocks and a kill.
 
The Screaming Eagles maintained control of the lead for the entire set, dominating the block game with five as a team. Sophomore Mackenzie Nettles put up three blocks and added five kills to lead the team in both. Fair had her best set of the match, adding four kills from the outside.
 
Fifth-year Aspen Jankowski gave the Screaming Eagles a momentum boost in their first fifth set of the season, as she landed her third service ace of the match. The offense was a team effort as kills came from five different USI players. Nettles and Thomas connected on two more blocks for the team to close out the match.
 
For the match, Willis led the team with 14 kills and 18 digs for a double-double. Thomas dished out 49 assists for a new season high, along with seven digs, five kills, and a career-high seven blocks. Nettles had a career night with eight kills and seven blocks.
 
The freshmen competed hard coming off the bench as Sensenbrenner tallied five blocks, and Fair put down 11 kills for a career high.