MOREHEAD, Ky. - The Morehead State volleyball team battled but were swept by Cincinnati 3-0 Thursday in Ellis T. Johnson Arena in Morehead, Ky.
 
Set scores were (18-25, 23-25, 20-25).
 
Morehead State (4-3) was led by Amelia Nott, who posted 11 kills and a .625 hitting percentage. Nott added two aces and two blocks. Freshman Ella Warrick added nine kills and a service ace for the Eagles.
 
Cincinnati (5-2) was led by sophomore Izzy Busignani, who tied her career-high with 16 kills while hitting .406. Senior Sydney Nolan added 11 kills and posted a .475 attack efficiency.
 
Cincinnati used an early eight-point run to take a 10-2 lead in the opening set. Morehead State rallied and got as close as four before Cincinnati pulled away. The Bearcats posted a .414 hitting percentage and had a 2-1 edge in blocks. Morehead State had a 4-3 edge in service aces in the set.
 
Cincinnati ran off four straight points to take an 11-5 lead in the second set. The Bearcats extended the lead to 20-9 and then the Eagles mounted a rally. MSU outscored UC 12-3 to make the score 23-21, the run capped by an ace by Sydney Sennett. The Eagles held off three set points before falling 25-23.
 
The third set was closely contested with seven ties and four lead changes. Cincinnati got a five-point run to take a 15-11 lead into the technical timeout. The Eagles got to within a point at 18-17 before the Bearcats steadily pulled away to clinch the match.
 

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EVANSVILLE 3, TENNESSEE STATE 1
NASHVILLE - Tennessee State volleyball turned in one of its strongest performances of the young season Thursday night, pushing Evansville through four sets before falling 3-1 at Kean Hall.

Evansville took the opening two sets, 25-19 and 25-23, before Tennessee State answered with a 31-29 victory in an extended third set. The Aces escaped a late TSU push in the fourth to close the match, 25-23.

The Tigers produced season-best offensive numbers with 54 kills while hitting .224 as a team. TSU also finished with 72 digs and seven total blocks. The Tigers were at their best in the third set, putting down 17 kills with just three errors on 41 swings for a .341 hitting percentage.

Wiktoria Jakubik led the attack with a career-high 18 kills while hitting .359. Sydney Robinson followed with 12 kills and 13 digs for her first collegiate double-double.

Freshman Triniti Jackson delivered the best performance of her young career, filling the stat sheet with seven kills on 16 errorless swings for a .438 hitting percentage, 36 assists, 13 digs and two block assists.

Gabrielle Washington was equally efficient in the middle, finishing with eight kills and just one error on 17 attempts for a .412 hitting percentage. Washington also played a role in five of TSU's seven blocks, recording one solo block and four block assists to finish with 11 points.

Jordan Imperial anchored the back row with a career-high 17 digs and added two service aces, while Sydni Poston collected 15 digs.

Tennessee State settled in quickly after Evansville scored the opening point. Jackson recorded her first kill of the night before Washington delivered a solo block and Sydney Robinson followed with a kill to give TSU an early 5-2 advantage. Imperial added a service ace as the Tigers stretched the lead to 6-2.

The Tigers maintained their advantage through the middle of the frame. Jakubik's kill put TSU ahead 13-8, and Washington later connected on consecutive kills to give the Tigers a 15-12 advantage.

Evansville worked back to tie the set at 16 before Washington answered with another kill to even things at 17. The Aces took control from there, using a late run to pull away before closing the opening set, 25-19.

TSU again started quickly in the second set. Jakubik opened the frame with consecutive kills before Imperial recorded her second ace of the match. Washington and Jackson combined for a block to extend the Tigers' early advantage to 7-4.

The teams traded momentum through the middle of the set. Jackson recorded kills to keep TSU within striking distance, while Washington, Savanna Moore and Melae Lacy contributed offensively as the Tigers stayed close.

Trailing 20-16, TSU mounted a late push. Jakubik and Robinson supplied kills before Jakubik added an ace to cut the deficit to 23-21. Robinson followed with another kill to make it 24-22, and an Evansville attack error brought the Tigers within one at 24-23 before the Aces secured the final point.

The Tigers refused to go quietly in the third.

Evansville opened a 12-7 advantage, but TSU began cutting into the deficit behind Jakubik and Jackson. Jackson produced two kills during the comeback before Robinson's service ace brought the Tigers within 16-14.

TSU continued to chip away and eventually pulled even at 17. Jakubik then took over late, delivering consecutive kills to erase a 22-20 deficit and tie the set at 22. Robinson followed with a kill to put the Tigers ahead 23-22.

From there, neither side gave an inch. Robinson tied the frame at 25 before TSU moved ahead 26-25. After Evansville answered, Washington and Lacy combined for a block to even the set again at 27.

The teams remained tied at 29 before Jackson delivered a kill to put TSU at set point, 30-29. Robinson followed with the finishing kill as the Tigers took the marathon frame, 31-29, and forced a fourth set.

The fourth set developed into another battle.

Washington and Jakubik supplied early kills as TSU stayed within striking distance. Robinson added three kills during the opening half of the frame, while Washington delivered back-to-back kills to bring the Tigers within 17-11.

Evansville eventually built a 20-14 advantage, but TSU answered with a late surge. Robinson and Jakubik combined for four kills during a 6-1 stretch that cut the deficit to 21-20.

After Evansville pushed back in front 22-20, Jakubik's kill made it a one-point set before Jackson and Washington combined for a block to tie the frame at 22. Evansville reached match point at 24-22, but Washington answered with her eighth kill of the night to bring TSU within 24-23. The Aces then secured the final point for the 25-23 win.
 

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LOYOLA 3, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 2
CHICAGO - Southeast Missouri volleyball's comeback fell short against Loyola Chicago 3-2 on Thursday. Southeast Missouri took an 8-5 lead in the fourth set after trailing 4-3 and won the set 25-21, but the Ramblers took the fifth 15-10.

Southeast Missouri built a 5-3 edge on early kills by Alaina Lester, Lucy Arndt and Katarina Miscevic. After the Ramblers stretched the margin to 12-7, Brooklyn Ritter's kill started a seven-point Southeast Missouri run, and Megan Holder served six straight points during the surge with two aces, a Reagan Nelson kill and a Lester-Paige Smith block helping put Southeast Missouri ahead 14-12. The Ramblers answered after Nelson's kill made it 15-13, scoring five straight to move ahead 18-15, and although Marin Johnson's kill later pulled Southeast Missouri within 21-18, the Ramblers took the final four points to win the set 25-18.

Southeast Missouri opened the second set with a Smith kill from Nina Schuberth, a Holder service ace and a Nelson kill from Holder for a 3-0 lead, and later pushed the margin to 7-1 behind two Lester kills and Lester-Smith block. The Ramblers worked back to 9-7 with Katie Scherer and Leyna Nguyen kills around two blocks, but Southeast Missouri answered with points from Johnson, Lester and Nelson to stay in front. Nelson's service ace made it 18-11, and after the Ramblers moved within 19-14, Arndt's kill from Ellie Burns and a Mallory Bohl attack error gave Southeast Missouri a 22-14 lead. The Ramblers scored three of the next four points, but Arndt and Nelson supplied late kills before Nelson closed the set with another kill from Burns for a 25-19 Southeast Missouri win.

Southeast Missouri edged in front 4-2 in the third set on kills by Arndt, Johnson and Schuberth before the Ramblers tied it at 4-4 and the teams traded points to 11-11. The Ramblers moved ahead with four straight points from there, using a Leyna Nguyen kill and two Southeast Missouri attack errors to build a 15-11 lead. Nelson recorded three kills as Southeast Missouri worked back within 18-16, but the Ramblers answered with four straight points, including a Katie Scherer kill and consecutive Jae Fitting service aces, to go up 22-16. Lester and Smith had kills late and Southeast Missouri reached 24-20 on a Ramblers attack error, but Mallory Bohl closed the set with a kill for a 25-20 Ramblers win.

After the Ramblers moved in front 4-2, Southeast Missouri tied the fourth set on Arndt's kill and went ahead 5-4 on an attack error. Arndt, Jacey Young and Nelson helped Southeast Missouri keep the lead through the middle of the set, with Nelson's kill making it 20-17 after the Ramblers had cut the margin to two. The Ramblers pulled within 21-20, but a service error, Lester's ace and another Arndt kill pushed Southeast Missouri to set point before Arndt finished the 25-21 set win.

Nelson opened the fifth set with a service ace and Arndt followed with a kill from Holder as Southeast Missouri moved ahead 2-0. The Ramblers tied it at 2-2, but Southeast Missouri stayed in front at 5-3 after a Smith kill, a Young kill and a Ramblers attack error. The set was even at 7-7 before the Ramblers scored three straight on a Lester attack error, a Mya Ball ace and a block by Avary DeBlieck and Claire Van Den Herik to go up 10-7. Nelson stopped that stretch with a kill, but the Ramblers pushed the lead to 14-8 and closed the fifth set 15-10 after Southeast Missouri pulled back two points.