USI falls to SIUE, 3-1
Edwardsville, Ill. – University of Southern Indiana Volleyball (1-27, 1-16 OVC) ends the night with a 3-1 loss (17-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-25) to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (12-16, 7-10 OVC) Friday night at First Community Arena. Junior outside hitter Leah Anderson (Bloomington, Illinois) had 13 kills and 12 digs while sophomore setter Carly Sobieralski (Indianapolis, Indiana) nabbed 32 assists and 11 digs to produce the two double-doubles for the Screaming Eagles.
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Strategic runs from SIUE ended with a 25-17 opening-set loss for USI. The Eagles were keeping up with the Cougars until a 5-0 surge spotted SIUE a 10-4 lead. Despite getting a quick point off a service error, USI watched SIUE put up six of the next eight points to extend the lead, 16-7. Junior outside/right side hitter/setter Katherine Koch (Belleville, Illinois) ended the run with one of her three kills in the frame to cut the deficit to eight. Down 21-11, the Eagles put up a 4-0 stint that included three kills by three different players to make it 21-15. However, the Cougars ended the set with back-to-back kills to get the 1-0 match lead. USI could only muster eight kills, their lowest all night.
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The Cougars gapped the Eagles early to steal the second set, 25-21. USI picked up the first two points of the set off a pair of kills from Koch and sophomore middle hitter Paris Downing (Avon, Indiana). SIUE retaliated by scoring seven of the next eight points to give the Cougars the 7-3 advantage. The Eagles were down 13-9 until a string of SIUE errors put USI back in the lead, 16-14. In that 7-1 stint, the Cougars had five attacking errors while USI had a kill from Downing and a service ace from junior libero/defensive specialist Audrey Crowder (Avon, Indiana). Despite the Eagles’ comeback efforts, the Cougars added a pair of 3-0 runs and some strategic play to score 11 of the final 16 points and take a 2-0 match lead. USI had minimal offensive mistakes in the second frame, producing nine kills with a match-low three errors.
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Two big USI runs rewarded the Eagles with a third-set victory, 25-23. USI went down 3-0 before the Eagles’ 6-0 run doubled up SIUE, 6-3. The Cougars gained some ground by going up 9-8 after a key 4-0 stint. Down 13-10, USI added its biggest run of the match by going on an 8-1 surge, giving the Eagles the 18-14 advantage. USI produced five kills during that run with Sobieralski earning two of the five kills. A late SIUE comeback forced some panic for USI until a set-ending kill from freshman Bianca Anderson (Chicago Heights, Illinois) gave the Eagles their first win of the match. USI tallied 15 kills in the third frame, the most for USI in the entire match.
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The Eagles could not get rolling in the final frame, falling 25-15. SIUE held a 4-1 lead before USI cut the deficit to just one. The Cougars would jump out to an enormous 11-3 advantage after a 7-0 run. Down 14-6, the Eagles watch SIUE go on another run, this time 5-0 which made the game 19-6. Despite being down by double-digits, the Eagles put in a last-minute effort with a 7-1 run to make it 23-15 before SIUE iced the cake and won the match.
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Anderson led both sides of the net for USI, earning her 13th double-double of the season with 13 kills and 12 digs while Koch tallied 11 kills to round out the double-digit kill recipients. Sobieralski recorded 32 assists and 11 digs to notch her 10th double-double of 2022. Also contributing was sophomore outside/right side hitter Abby Bednar (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) who added nine digs, eight kills, three blocks, and three aces while Downing recorded a team-high six blocks.
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As a team, the Eagles completed the match with 41 kills, 37 assists, and five aces along with 57 digs and nine blocks. The Cougars totaled 56 kills, 56 assists, and six aces with 69 digs and 13 blocks.
