THURSDAY'S SCORES
@Eastern Illinois 3, Missouri 0
@Southern Illinois 3,
UT Martin 0
UC San Diego 3,
@Tennessee State 1
@Missouri State 3,
Lindenwood 1
@Wyoming 3,
Tennessee Tech 0
EASTERN ILLINOIS 3, MISSOURI 0
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Eastern Illinois volleyball team continued their winning ways on Thursday night with a dominant 3-0 victory over Missouri in Lantz Arena. The Panthers controlled the entire match, rarely falling behind on the way to their sixth sweep of the season to bring their record to 10-0. The set scores were as follows: 25-22, 25-21, and 25-13.
In front of an electric home crowd, Eastern got things started with a set one win behind their lethal offensive attack. Kaitlyn Flynn led all players with seven kills in the set but was closely followed by Giovana Larregui López (six kills) and Natalie Mitchem (five kills). The Panthers hit .357 in the set as Catalina Rochaix recorded 18 assists.
In the second set, Mitchem led the way with five kills to bring her total to 10. Eastern also picked up their first aces of the match, with Christina Martinez Mundo and Sylvia Hasz recording one each. The Panthers also got some contributions from their defense, as four different panthers collected block assists to go along with a solo block from Julia Stanev to help secure the 2-0 lead.
In set three, EIU got a strong closing performance from Giovana Larregui López, who powered six kills past the Mizzou defense and added a service ace to help the Panthers bring home their tenth win of the season.
Larregui López ended the night as the Panthers' scoring leader as she recorded a match-high 15 kills. She also added three block assists on the night, which along with her service ace, brought her point total to 17.5.
Natalie Mitchem also had a strong outing, collecting 13 kills and matching Larregui López for the team's best hitting percentage with an average of .333.
Catlina Rochaix put up another strong performance at setter, tallying 36 assists for 12.0 assists per set as the Panthers combined for a team hitting percentage of .250.
On defense, Christina Martinez Mundo led the match with 13 digs, followed by Laura Paniagua with 10. Julia Stanev was responsible for the Panthers' lone solo block, as they ended the night with a team total of 7.0.
EIU will return to action on Friday afternoon, as they are set for another tussle with the Tigers to close out non-conference play. The match is set to begin at 4 p.m. in Lantz Arena.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 3, UT MARTIN 0
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The fourth and final nonconference tournament for the University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball squad began this evening as the Skyhawks fell to Saluki Invitational host Southern Illinois in three sets (20-25, 10-25, 23-25).
Graduate middle blocker Olivia Saunders topped UT Martin with seven points tonight, contributing a co-team-high six kills to go along with a pair of blocks. The Mississauga, Ontario, Canada native also chipped in a .333 hitting percentage with only one attack error in 15 swings.
Halle Everett tied Saunders for the team lead with six kills this evening while Mia Saenz followed closely behind with five rally killers. Addy Vaughn distributed a team-best 12 assists with five digs while Haeleigh Paulino contributed 11 assists and six digs.
On the defensive end, Dylan Mott scooped up a team-high 10 digs for the Skyhawks (2-7), who were facing the Salukis (7-3) for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
UT Martin rounds out its participation in the Saluki Invitational tomorrow with a matinee against Oakland. The Skyhawks will square off against the Horizon League foe for the first time in program history at 1 p.m.
UC SAN DIEGO 3, TENNESSEE STATE 1
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Aleksandra Rojecka recorded her first double-double of the year, but it was not enough as the Tennessee State Tiger volleyball team fell Thursday as the UC San Diego Tritons 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 17-25, 26-28) in the first game of the Tiger-Bruin Invitational. The Tigers found energy against a tough Triton team from a raucous crowd that came to help them celebrate receiving their 2022 OVC championship rings.
Rojecka registered a team-leading 14 kills and had 12 digs on the day. Jayla Holcombe added 13 kills and swung at a .346 clip to help the attack. Freshman Celianiz Cabranes also pitched in with five service aces in the contest. Hennesys Lalane quarterbacked the offense to the tune of 34 assists. On the defensive end, Cabranes chipped in with 21 digs to go with four blocks from Gabrielle Johnson. For Holcombe, this was her first time playing at Kean. She was amazed by the crowd and the play of Rojecka.
SET 1 | The Tigers were in an early hole, dropping the first set 25-20. Tennessee State trailed by as many as eight points as UCSD grabbed the advantage for good at 4-3 in a set that was tied up four times before the Tritons took control. TSU struggled, only hitting .071 in the set.
SET 2 | TSU evened the match at 1-1 with a 25-18 victory in set two. The Tigers never trailed by more than five points and grabbed the advantage for good at 13-12 in a set that showcased four lead changes before TSU took over the lead. The offense also got a boost from four aces in the stanza. Down 6-3 early, the Tigers went on a 4-0 spurt to take the lead, with Holcombe getting two service aces during the run. Rojecka went on a roll, scoring points nine, ten, 11, and 13 for TSU on kills. Her play gave the Tigers the spurt they needed to go on an 8-2 run to take control of the set. Holcombe's kill finished the set off for the TSU.
SET 3 | UCSD responded to win set number three, putting Tennessee State in a two sets to one hole 25-17. Tennessee State trailed by as many as eight points as UCSD grabbed the advantage for good at 8-7 in a set that was tied up four times before the Tritons took over the lead.
SET 4 | TSU lost the fourth set, 28-26, to finish the match. The Tigers fell in a close set, losing in a stanza tied six times with three lead changes. TSU had a 16-13 advantage in kills but was plagued by four service errors. Early on, it looked like the Tigers would push the match to a fifth by taking a 13-8 lead on a Holcombe kil. UCSD's 4-0 run got them back in the set, forcing TSU to burn a timeout. The set went back and forth until the Tigers went up 23-20 on an attack error. The Tritons rallied back to end the match.
The Tigers will return to action on Friday when they take on Jackson State at 6 p.m.
MISSOURI STATE 3, LINDENWOOD 1
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Lindenwood women's volleyball (4-6, 0-0 OVC) loses their first of two matches at the Bear Invitational in Springfield, Mo. by a final score of 3-1 against host team Missouri State (5-5, 0-0 MVC). The Lions posted 58 kills as a team with a .173 hitting percentage.
Lindenwood opened up Thursday's match with a 26-24 set one victory. The Lions jumped out early with a 5-1 advantage to start the set. Missouri State would flip the switch taking a five point lead, 15-10. The first set ended in back and forth action with the Lions taking the win.
Four different Lions had four kills in the first including freshman Anna Kraemer and Jade Roth. Addy McAleer also chipped in four. Libero Jessie Seidel added a team-high 12 digs to lead the defense in the first set.
Missouri State knotted up the match at 1-1 with a 23-25 set victory in the second. Lindenwood trailed the entire way including being down nine three times including a 20-11 score. The Lions fought back towards the end going on an 11-2 run before MSU took the set.
Again the Lions battled in the third set before ultimately falling by a score of 21-25. Lindenwood's leading attacker Nyah Wilson added three kills in the set while McAleer added another three to her total. Missouri State's defense forced the Lions into 12 attack errors and a -.097 hitting percentage.
The match came to a close as both team tried to find a way at the end to win. There was 10 ties during the fourth set including at the 22-22 mark. MSU ended the set scoring the final three points to take home the victory. Rebecca Janke led the way in the final set with five kills and a .556 hitting percentage.
Wilson led the Lions with 14 kills in the loss while also adding eight digs. McAleer was right behind her with 11 kills and eight digs. Seidel picked up a season high 29 digs while also adding two aces. Allie Otten also had 30 assists while Abby VanBuskirk had 19 assists and 11 digs.
Lindenwood was forced into 29 attack errors while Missouri State only had 16. MSU also was a force at the net with 12.0 total blocks compared to just 3.0 by Lindenwood.
The Lions will be back in action tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 p.m. when they face Arkansas State to end the Bear Invitational. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.
WYOMING 3, TENNESSEE TECH 0
LARAMIE, Wyo. - Consistency on offense was the key factor for the Tennessee Tech volleyball team on Thursday, as the Golden Eagles fell to Wyoming, 3-0, in the first contest of the UniWyo Invite in Laramie, Wyo.
The Cowgirls hit .307 while holding Tech to an attack of just .078 on the night. Wyoming also used a 39-25 advantage in the kills column to take the victory. The Golden Eagles did produce more blocks in the contest with a 9.0-8.0 advantage.
Junior outside hitter Madolyn Isringhausen led the Tech squad with nine kills in the match, racking up three digs, an ace, and two blocks to the mix. Middle blocker Skylar Boom led the purple and gold with four blocks in the tilt.
Setter Jordan Karlen tallied 24 assists and five digs to pace the Golden Eagles on both sides. Ava Schubert and Ayanna Rodgers both tallied two blocks to add to the Tech effort while Bella Powell accounted for five kills and three digs.
Wyoming used a late surge to pull away from the purple and gold in the opening set, breaking an 11-11 tie to win 25-18. In the second set, the Golden Eagles fought tooth and nail with the Cowgirls, trailing by just three at 23-20. The home squad snagged back-to-back points to win 25-20 and take a 2-0 lead.
Tech struggled to find a consistent attack in the third set, posting seven kills and eight errors. On the flip side, Wyoming turned in its most effective set, registering 12 kills on a .350 attack for the 25-15 win.
The Golden Eagles conclude its non-conference action for the season Friday afternoon, squaring off with Idaho State in its final match of the UniWyo Invite at 3:00 p.m. CT.