Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
SIU Edwardsville
Racers Earn Come-From-Behind Victory at SIU Edwardsville
10/28/2010 8:45:03 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Racers (12-13, 7-6 OVC) were led by senior Sara Hayden who tallied a season-best 15 kills, a .414 (15k-3e-29ta) hitting percentage and a season-high six blocks. Fellow seniors Ashley Nenninger and Becca Lamb were also in double-digits in the kill column, with 17 and 10 respectively. Junior Kayleah Sauer had a strong performance with 22 digs and three service aces, including aces on the final two points of the match.
The Racers came out strong in the first set, earning the first four points. The Cougars then picked up the momentum and tied the set at nine with several small runs. The teams traded serves and leads over the next five points before either team was able to get control of the scoreboard. MSU went on a 4-0 run to regain the lead before seeing the Cougars go on a 6-0 run to take control again with a 20-17 advantage. SIUE was up 20-23 before the Racers turned the momentum back in their favor and tied the set at 23, with a 3-0 run. The battled resumed and the set was forced into extra points before the Cougars eventually earned the 27-29 win.
The second set saw the Racers struggle to get started, as SIUE jumped out to an early lead and kept pushing the momentum throughout the set. MSU was held to just one point at a time until late, while the Cougars went on several runs throughout the set on their way to a 17-25 win.
The third set was a repeat of the first with both teams battling for control of the scoreboard. Neither team was able to garner more than a two-point advantage until late in the set. The final of 15 tie scores was at 17-all when the Racers went on a 5-0 run that gave them a 22-17 advantage. The Cougars made a final push, with a 4-1 run, but MSU kept fighting and earned the 25-21 win.
SIUE came out strong in the fourth set, with a 3-0 run to take the early lead. The Racers again struggled for consistency and were held to one point in-a-row while the Cougars used several small runs to continue to increase their advantage to as many as five points (5-10). Then MSU got back into the set, with a 3-0 run that cut the lead to two points. The Racers kept fighting and tied the set at 17 and took their first lead of the set 18-17, with a 4-0 rally. The teams traded the next three serves before another 3-0 Racers' run gave them a 22-19 advantage. The battle resumed, but the advantage was too much to overcome and MSU forced the fifth and deciding set with a 25-22 win.
MSU opened up the set with a 2-0 run and then took a 6-3 advantage before SIUE fought back to tie the set at six and take a 6-7 lead, with a 4-0 run. The Racers responded with a 6-0 run that gave them control of the set and match (12-7). MSU allowed the Cougars to tally just one more point before Sauer ended the match with two-straight service aces for the 15-8 win.
The Racers rebounding from a .196 hitting percentage in set one, to garner a .287 (70k-22e-167ta) mark in the match. SIUE hit .206 (62k-26e-175ta) and earned an 11-4 advantage in the service ace column. MSU also reversed an early block deficit to out-block the Cougars 10-8.
The Racers will have the weekend off before hosting UT Martin at Racer Arena, Tuesday, Nov. 2 at 7 p.m. in Ohio Valley Conference action.
Notes: This was the sixth five-set match for MSU this season and the second in three matches…after being out-blocked 2-7 in the first two sets the Racers recorded eight blocks in sets three and four, four each set… junior Jade Guo recorded her eighth double-double of the season with 52 assists and 10 digs.
