CHARLESTON, Ill. –University of Southern Indiana Volleyball (15-15, 10-8 OVC) took down No. 4 Morehead State University (18-13, 11-7 OVC) in the opening round of the Ohio Valley Conference Championship, 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-23), at Lantz Arena Monday morning. The Screaming Eagles advance to the semifinal round to face the winner of No. 1 Eastern Illinois University and No. 8 University of Arkansas at Little Rock on Tuesday at 3 p.m.
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USI’s defense stepped up in the opening frame with a 25-18 victory to take an early match lead. The Screaming Eagles jumped out ahead early after senior outside hitter Leah Anderson (Bloomington, Illinois) posted a pair of kills to lead 8-7. Morehead State was able to take a quick lead at 9-8 before USI posted a 7-0 run that flipped the script. The Screaming Eagles’ defense forced six attacking errors while senior outside/right side hitter Abby Bednar (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) added two kills. Even after a Morehead State kill, the Screaming Eagles posted another run, this time a 4-0 surge that put the score at 19-10. Despite being down by as many as 10, Morehead State was able to cut the deficit in half after a 5-0 stint. However, USI was able to clamp down and secure the victory after back-to-back kills from sophomore middle hitter Bianca Anderson (Chicago Heights, Illinois). The Screaming Eagles tallied 11 kills and held Morehead State to eight kills while forcing nine errors.
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The Screaming Eagles posted a match-high 17 kills and 0.262 hitting percentage to propel past Morehead State with a 25-22 second-set victory. USI went down 5-1 early before a pair of Bednar kills and a few Morehead State attacking errors knotted the match up at six apiece. Even after Morehead State regained the lead, USI posted four straight kills to swing the momentum back. During the surge, a trio of Screaming Eagles recorded a kill including Bednar, Bianca Anderson, and junior setter Carly Sobieralski (Indianapolis, Indiana). Both sides traded blows until a 3-0 run from Morehead State saw USI’s lead dwindle to just one. However, a set-sealing kill from Leah Anderson put the Screaming Eagles on top with a 2-0 match lead.
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Another solid offensive outing from USI secured the victory in the frame and match, 25-23. Bednar recorded three early kills with junior outside hitter Abby Weber (Fishers, Indiana) tacking on one kill to push the Screaming Eagles’ lead to 6-3. After a Morehead State kill, USI posted a 4-0 run that started with repeating kills from Bianca Anderson. Morehead State returned the favor by scoring seven of the next eight points to tie the set at 11 each. An ace from sophomore libero/defensive specialist Keira Moore (Newburgh, Indiana) and a couple of kills from Leah Anderson put the Screaming Eagles back on top, 15-12. Despite being down, a Morehead State rebuttal swapped the momentum and tied the game at 17. USI stole back the lead and ultimately took the win with the help of seven kills from five different Screaming Eagles to close out the frame. USI tallied 16 kills with just five errors in the set while Morehead State had its best offensive set of the match, recording 13 kills.
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Bednar led the attack for the Screaming Eagles with 15 kills and a 0.310 hitting percentage while also adding three blocks to the stat sheet. Leah Anderson recorded the lone double-double for USI with 12 kills and 14 digs. Also nabbing double-digit digs was Moore with 17 digs while Sobieralski posted 26 assists and nine digs in the win. Junior middle hitter Paris Downing (Avon, Indiana) pounded down four blocks to lead USI at the net.
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As a team, the Screaming Eagles had 44 kills, 35 assists, and one ace to pair with 59 digs and five blocks. The Eagles posted 33 kills, 30 assists, and six aces with 53 digs and eight blocks.
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NEXT UP FOR THE EAGLES:
The Eagles will face the Panthers for the third time this season. EIU holds a 2-0 record against USI this season after taking down the Eagles 3-1 in Evansville and then holding them down 3-2 at Lantz Arena.
