SATURDAY'S SCORES
@SIUE 3, Tennessee Tech 1
@Morehead State 3, Southern Indiana 2
@Eastern Illinois 3, Lindenwood 1
@UT Martin 3, Western Illinois 1
Southeast Missouri 3, @Tennessee State 0
SIUE 3, TENNESSEE TECH 1
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE volleyball dropped the first set of the match, but the Cougars rallied off three straight set wins for the second consecutive game in a row to down Tennessee Tech, 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at First Community Arena.
The Cougars improve to 10-9 on the season and 4-4 in Ohio Valley Conference play. TTU falls to 6-14 and 2-7.
After falling in the first frame, SIUE regrouped and hit its best attack percentage of the game in the second set at .367.
SIUE concluded the match with a .169 hitting percentage while connecting on 51 attacks.
MOREHEAD STATE 3, SOUTHERN INDIANA 2
MOREHEAD, Ky. - The Morehead State volleyball team fought back from a 2-0 hole to record a comeback five-set victory (16-25, 21-25, 25-14, 25-20, 15-7) against the Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles Saturday at home at Johnson Arena.
The Eagles' third consecutive conference win improved Morehead State's record to 11-10 overall and 4-5 in OVC play. MSU is now 6-0 all-time vs. Southern Indiana.
The Eagles were led by a double-double from Irene Wogenstahl, who registered 14 kills and 12 blocks on the day. M.E. Hargan also added a career-best 26 kills to help the attack. On the defensive end, Peighton Isley lead the team with 21 digs. Shea Hefner posted 17 digs of her own, while Courtney Fitzgerald had 13 digs to go with six blocks from Amelia Nott. Morehead State registered 19 total blocks in the win.
The Eagles found themselves in an early hole, dropping a tough first set 25-16. Morehead State trailed by as many as 10 points as Southern Indiana grabbed the advantage for good at 5-4 in a set that was tied up three times before the Screaming Eagles took control.
Morehead State then dropped set two 25-21 to fall behind in the match two sets to none. The Eagles came up short in a back-and-forth set, losing in a stanza that featured six lead changes and was tied 10 times. Neither team led by more than four points along the way.
After losing the opening two sets, Morehead State fought back to grab set three and make it a 2-1 match. The Eagles led from the opening point on in the set to secure a 25-14 victory. Morehead State opened up as much as a 13 point lead at 24-11 before closing out the set. The Morehead State offense also got a boost from four aces in the stanza.
Morehead State continued their comeback, winning the fourth set 25-20 to bring the match level at two sets apiece. A dominant defensive effort from the front row helped the Eagles grab the set. Morehead State notched eight blocks in the set win. The Eagles opened up a 23-17 lead in the stanza and coasted to victory from there.
Morehead State fell behind 2-0, but mounted a furious rally to grab the last three sets, culminating in a 15-7 fifth-set victory, and take the match 3-2. The Eagles took set five propelled by a strong showing on the attacking end. Morehead State registered a .692 attack percentage with 10 kills in the set win. The Eagles ended on a strong note, stretching their lead to its largest point in the set to finish out the stanza.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 3, LINDENWOOD 1
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Eastern Illinois volleyball team took down Lindenwood on Saturday in a decisive 3-1 victory. The win improves their conference record to 7-1 and overall record to 17-2. It was a nice bounce back effort from the Panthers and allowed them to remain atop the OVC standings. The final set scores were as follows: 25-20, 25-23, 20-25, and 25-14.
EIU mostly controlled the first set, as they grabbed a 10-9 lead and never let go, growing their advantage to as many as seven points and ultimately winning by five. EIU spread the wealth offensively, as Giovana Larregui López led the way with four kills and a service ace. Kate Dean and Julia Stanev both had three kills and a block in the set.
Set two was definitely the most dramatic of the afternoon, as EIU overcame a 23-21 deficit late to take the set and gain a 2-0 advantage in the match. Natalie Mitchem led the Panthers in kills with five while also adding a pair of blocks. Dean also had two blocks in the set.
Lindenwood punched back in the third set, as they overcame a fast EIU start to keep the match alive. Mitchem had another big set, this time tallying seven kills with two more blocks. Kaitlyn Flynn also found her rhythm with five kills in the set.
In the fourth set, the Panthers left no room for doubt, as they led the entire set on their way to a dominant eleven-point win. Mitchem and Flynn both accounted for five kills in the set, as Catalina Rochaix handed out 13 assists.
Natalie Mitchem finished with a match-high 19 kills on a fantastic .405 hitting percentage. She also added six blocks.
Giovana Larregui López recorded her seventh double-double of the season as she collected 12 kills and 10 digs. She also tallied three service aces.
Kaitlyn Flynn smashed eleven kills on a .368 hitting percentage and added a pair of blocks, while Kate Dean finished the match with 11.0 points that included eight kills and three blocks.
Catalina Rochaix also recorded a double-double, her fifth of the year. She collected 46 assists for an average of 11.5 assists per set while also recording 12 digs. Rochaix's setting helped the Panthers to a team hitting percentage of .310.
Christina Martinez Mundo was again the match leader in digs with 23. She also had four assists.
Julia Stanev continued to hold down the middle with six blocks, which tied Mitchem for the match high.
UT MARTIN 3, WESTERN ILLINOIS 1
MARTIN, Tenn. - Several University of Tennessee at Martin players contributed with career- or season-best performances as the Skyhawk volleyball squad earned a 3-1 home victory over Ohio Valley Conference rival Western Illinois (25-16, 19-25, 25-21, 25-20) this afternoon.
UT Martin (5-14, 3-6 OVC) outscored the visiting Leathernecks by a 8-1 margin at the service line, establishing a season-high tally in aces. Four different Skyhawks pitched into the season-best total, led by a career-high four aces from Dylan Mott. Ryan Rednour came away with a season-best two aces and was joined by one ace out of both Kayla Bryant and Haeleigh Paulino.
Olivia Saunders announced her presence today as the 6-2 graduate middle blocker landed a match-high 15 kills on a .250 hitting percentage while also swatting away a season-best seven blocks (three solo).
Overall, five separate UT Martin players registered at least seven kills in an evenly distributed offensive attack. That list included Kristin Phillips (nine kills on a team-best .318 hitting percentage in three sets), Mott (career-high eight kills against just two errors), Bryant (eight kills) and Paulino (seven kills).
In addition to her seven kills, Paulino compiled her eighth double-double of the season with a season-high 40 assists and 17 digs. The graduate from Peoria, Ariz. also tacked on a career-best three blocks at the net.
Mott's big day offensively (12 points) also included 20 digs, ranking just ahead of Kayla Carrell (19 digs) for a match-high in that category. Bryant added 12 scoops for the Skyhawks.
UT Martin ended the first set on a 9-2 surge, keyed by Saunders (four kills on eight swings) and Paulino (10 assists). Western Illinois (6-12, 5-3 OVC) scored six of the first seven points of the second stanza despite four blocks by Saunders in that set alone. Phillips (four kills) and Mott (three kills, two service aces, eight digs) paced the Skyhawks to the cusp of victory in the third set as UT Martin sided out at 71 percent (15-of-21 opportunities). The fourth set was knotted at 15-all but the Skyhawks accumulated seven of the next nine points as Saunders finished the final stanza with five kills.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 3, TENNESSEE STATE 0
NASHVILLE - Libero Tara Beilsmith became the all-time leader for digs in Ohio Valley Conference history on Saturday as Southeast Missouri (15-4, 7-1 OVC) swept Tennessee State (2-15, 2-5 OVC) 3-0 for their fourth-straight victory in conference play.
Heading into the match, Beilsmith needed just 21 digs to break Gina Rivera-Ortiz's record of 2,662 career digs. Leading 21-17 in the third set, Tara dug the 21st ball of the match to become the all-time digs leader in conference history.
The Libero from Weldon Spring, Mo. finished with exactly 21 kills including a perfect 1.000 reception percentage on 17 attempts.
The Redhawks won the match 25-17, 25-18, 25-17 to record their seventh win in OVC play, including their sixth sweep of an opponent.
Lucy Arndt recorded her second-straight double double in Saturday's contest, leading the Redhawks with 12 kills and 10 digs including a service ace.
Arndt finished the day with a .314 htting-percentage.
Talia Gouard continued her impressive weekend with 12 kills of her own on just 19 attempts for a team-high .421 attack-percentage. Gouard recorded a block assist on the defensive side of the net.
As a team, SEMO had just three blocks to TSU's eight, but the Redhawks finished the afternoon with 42 kills as a team and a .241 team hitting-percentage to just .084 from TSU.
Setter Izzy Lukens recorded 32 assists in Saturday's contest. In just two games, the senior from Omaha, Nebraska, Lukens combined for 84 assists over the weekend.
In the first set, SEMO hit a staggering .500 percent with 18 kills, two errors, on 32 total attacks, a game high.
In a match that lasted just one hour and 20 minutes, 14 different times the score was tied and there were just eight lead changes as SEMO dominated the entire afternoon.
Redshirt sophomore Avery Torrey got into the mix on Saturday afternoon with a pair of kills herself on just five total attempts.