Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
17-10,11-4OVC
Austin Peay
7-19,5-7OVC
Giustino, Holthaus Carry Racers to Five-Set Victory over Austin Peay
11/13/2019 10:27:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The Murray State volleyball team has had better nights, but in the end, the result was still sweet as the Racers took down Austin Peay in five sets in the First Financial Bank Battle of the Border at Racer Arena, Wednesday evening.
The Racers (17-10, 11-4 OVC) depended on the play of their two big offensive weapons in Rachel Giustino and Rachel Holthaus and they delivered as they combined for 54 of the teams' 73 kills. Giustino led the way with 33 kills on a .371 hitting percentage while Holthaus was even more efficient, hitting .462 with 21 kills.
Ashley McBee dished out 50 assists, her sixth 50-assist performance of the season while Becca Fernandez anchored the defense with 24 digs. Giustino, Holthaus, and McBee also had 10-plus digs to each record a double-double. Giustino also led the team with five blocks.
The Racers got off to a rough start as they fell behind 6-0 right away. However, Murray State won 13 of the next 19 points to take a 13-12 lead. The two teams went back-and-forth until the set was tied at 23 when a service error by the Governors (10-19, 8-7 OVC) and an ace by Emily Matson gave the Racers the set, 25-23.
The second set saw the Racers face another early six-point deficit as they fell behind 11-5, but again, the Racers climbed their way back into it, tying the set at 22. However, Austin Peay was the team to close out the set on a mini-run, winning the set, 25-22.
In the third set, the Governors took a 9-8 lead, which ended up being the last lead change of the set as the Racers were unable to tie it up the rest of the set, leading to a 25-19 set three victory for Austin Peay.
The Racers reversed the script in the fourth set as they took a 9-8 lead and never looked back. A 4-0 run gave MSU the separation they needed to take a 16-11 lead. From that point forward, Giustino and Holthaus combined for seven of the last nine Racer points, leading MSU to win the fourth set, 25-19.
With the score tied at six in the fifth set, kills by Giustino and McBee gave the Racers an 8-6 lead as the teams switched sides. A 4-2 run by the Racers extended the lead to 12-8 before a kill by the Governors cut their deficit to three. In a similar situation in the last match at UT Martin, the Racers were unable to hold on to a late fifth set lead, but after a timeout by the Racers, MSU won three of the final four points, clinching the set on Giustino's 33rd and final kill of the match.
The Racers will wrap up the regular season, Saturday at 4 p.m. against Morehead State at Racer Arena. Seniors Giustino, Holthaus, Courtney Radle, Alex Kaufmann, and Megan Lindsay will all be recognized and honored before the match.
