Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
7-6 (1-0OVC)
Eastern Illinois
1-12 (0-1OVC)
Racers Open OVC Play with Sweep at EIU
9/27/2019 10:14:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
The race for the Ohio Valley Conference title officially began Friday night for the Murray State volleyball team as they took on Eastern Illinois, sweeping the Panthers in three dominating sets in Charleston.
Rachel Giustino led MSU with 13 kills, followed by Emily Matson with 10. Ashley McBee dished out 25 assists while Becca Fernandez notched 19 digs. The Racers were also strong upfront on defense as they had seven blocks, led by Alysha Smith with four, including two solo.
In the first set, the Panthers had a 14-12 lead before Murray State went on a 4-0 run to take the lead and control of the set. EIU won two of the next three points, but three straight points by the Racers flipped the momentum once again as MSU eventually won 25-19.
The second set was close early with Eastern Illinois taking an 8-7 lead. However, that was where the tides turned as the Racers went on a 14-2 run to take control, eventually winning the set easily, 25-15, on a kill by Megan Lindsay.
The Panthers looked like they might bounce back to win the third set as they held a 14-11 lead, but after a Murray State timeout, the Racers went on a 5-1 run to take a 16-15 lead. EIU kept their deficit at one at 19-18, but two kills by Matson and a service ace by Giustino gave the Racers the cushion they needed as they won the set, 25-21.
The Racers will look to make it two in a row tomorrow afternoon when they travel to SIU Edwardsville to take on the Cougars at 2 p.m. The match will be available to stream on ESPN+.
