SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Austin Peay 3, Eastern Kentucky 0 (25-22, 25-17, 25-21)
@Southeast Missour 3, Jacksonville State 1 (25-15, 25-17, 25-15)
@SIUE 3, Belmont 1 (25-18, 20-25, 25-23, 25-22)
Morehead State 3, @Murray State 0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-19)
AUSTIN PEAY 3, EASTERN KENTUCKY 0
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University’s volleyball team got off to an uneven start but found its stride at key moments in each set of a three-set Ohio Valley Conference sweep (25-22, 25-17, 25-21) of Eastern Kentucky, Saturday, at the Dunn Center.
After leading early in the opening set, Austin Peay (6-13, 3-1 OVC) found it was trailing by three points, 17-14, late in the frame. The Lady Govs responded with an impressive 8-0 run, including three kills by senior Lauren Henderson to take a 22-17 lead.
The teams traded points the set’s remainder before Austin Peay won 25-22. Henderson led Austin Peay with five kills in the set.
The second set was a nip-and-tuck affair with 11 ties and two lead changes. Austin Peay took control of the set with a 4-0 run to build a 19-15 advantage. The Lady Govs wrapped up the set with a 6-2 run to claim the 25-17 win. Five hitters had multiple kills in the set, junior Jada Stotts leading the effort with five kills.
Austin Peay nearly ran away in the third set, breaking out to a 16-9 lead after a kill by junior Liz Landon. Eastern Kentucky (6-13, 1-3 OVC) would inch back into the set, using a 5-0 run and a later 6-2 burst to tie the set at 21-21. The Colonels committed an attack error on the next service, the first of four points won by Austin Peay to secure the match with a 25-21 victory.
Stotts led Austin Peay in both kills (12) and digs (19) while adding two blocks. Landon added 11 kills and posted a team-best .588 attack percentage Ebright and Henderson each chipped in nine kills.
The Lady Govs posted 49 kills in the three-set match and recorded a .282 attack percentage. Defensively, they had seven blocks and were credited with 65 digs.
Ashley Edmond led Eastern Kentucky with a nine-kill outing. The Colonels were held to 32 kills and a .116 attack percentage for the match.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 3, JACKSONVILLE STATE 0
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The Southeast Missouri (9-9, 2-2 OVC) volleyball team delivered Jacksonville State (10-9, 3-1 OVC) their first Ohio Valley Conference loss Saturday in three sets (25-15, 25-17, 25-15).
With the score at 15-14 in the first set, the Redhawks began an impressive 8-0 run to propel them to 23-14, allowing them to pull way ahead and put them in striking distance of taking the first set. The Redhawks closed out the opening stanza, 25-15. Emily Coon and Colleen Yarber jump-started the offense with five kills apiece in the opening set.
Once again, the Redhawks used an 8-1 run in the second set to get out in front of the Gamecocks, 16-10. Southeast was able to hold off the Gamecocks and take the set 25-17 and a 2-0 lead in the match. Yarber added seven kills to her kill count in the second set.
The Redhawks were once again able to out-hit the Gamecocks in the third set to seal the deal and take the match, 25-15.
Yarber finished the day with 14 kills with Coon finishing with 10 in the three-set match. Andrea Baylin posted a season-high 19 digs with Julie Shives tallying a season-high seven kills. Freshman Madalyn Werths, in her first career start, posted six kills, a very respectable .294 hitting clip and a block, all a season-high. The Redhawks, the OVC leaders in blocking, were almost out-blocked, 5-4, with Coon tallying three.
Nicole Merget led the Gamecocks with 10 kills with Alina Agamy posting seven.
SIUE 3, BELMONT 1
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Cori Harris saw a career high in kills once again as SIUE volleyball downed defending Ohio Valley Conference tournament champions Belmont 25-18, 20-25, 25-23, 25-22 Saturday at the Vadalabene Center.
The victory helped the Cougars even their OVC record to 2-2 with an overall mark of 6-11. Belmont dropped to 8-12 overall and 1-3 in the OVC.
Harris recorded SIUE's season high in kills with 19, which is also a personal best. The Cougar senior was consistent throughout the match but saved the best for the fourth set with six kills.
It came down to minimizing errors for the Cougars. That became apparent early in the match. SIUE took the first set with just three attack errors.
Belmont, the OVC preseason favorite in the East Division, also struggled from the service line with 14 errors, including five in the opening set. Allison McCoy led the Bruins in kills with 12.
The Bruins didn't back down from the Cougars, coming out to a strong start in set two. After grabbing a 10-1 lead, Belmont held on to even the match. Errors, once again, played a major role in the outcome of the set as SIUE committed 12 attack errors.
The Cougars pulled to within five points with a late run
SIUE defensive specialist Haley Norris, who finished with a career-high 24 digs, saw the team show more confidence at the second-set break.
Both teams had to believe the third set was going to go their way. It featured 19 tie scores and 12 lead changes. The Cougars were lifted by the 194 fans who helped provide some motivation.
SIUE also excelled in another area of its defense. The Cougars finished with 11 blocks, including six from Kristen Torre and five from Kelsey Augustine.
Torre and Augustine each had nine kills for the Cougars. It was the third time this season Torre had gone without an attack error.
MOREHEAD STATE 3, MURRAY STATE 0
MURRAY, Ky. - Senior outside hitter Aryn Bohannon led the Morehead State with 12 kills and added 10 digs to pace the Eagles to a 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-19) Ohio Valley Conference victory at Murray State's Racer Arena Saturday.
The Eagles (13-5, 4-0) won their 26th straight OVC regular season match and 26th consecutive league road match. Morehead State also defeated Murray State (11-7, 1-3) for the ninth straight time.
Smith added seven kills, seven digs and a team-high four blocks. Senior libero Leslie Schellhaas moved into third place in career digs at Morehead State with a team-high 13 today. That gives her 1,903 in her four years in an Eagle uniform.
Sophomore middle blocker Hannah Sigala went out with an early injury but returned to tally eight kills and hit a team-best .583. Defensively, Morehead State out-dug the league's top digging team, 39-37. The Eagles also registered eight blocks.
Alyssa Lelm topped the hosts with nine kills, while libero Katlyn Hudson notched a match-best 14 digs. The Eagles, the top defensive club in the league for opponent hitting percentage, limited Murray State to an .058 efficiency.
The Eagles claimed the first set by outscoring the hosts 8-4 down the stretch. Murray State led 19-17, but Sigala posted a pair of kills, and the Racers committed two attack errors in the last four points.
Following a kill by Taylor Olden, Murray State tied the second set 9-9. But the Eagles used a 7-1 run, keyed by four Racer attack mistakes, to distance themselves.
The Eagles never trailed in the final set. Murray State tied it at 21-21, but Morehead State scored the final four, including two via Bohannon kills, to close out the win.
Morehead State finished with a .230 hitting percentage