USI Volleyball rallies for four-set win over Quincy

Freshman setter Casey Cepicky (St. Louis, Missouri) had 47 assists, seven kills, a .462 attacking percentage and 11 digs to lead the Screaming Eagles, who won for the ninth time in the last 11 outings.

Sophomore outside hitter Mikaila Humphrey (Floyd Knobs, Indiana) and sophomore middle hitter Elexis Coleman (Joliet, Illinois) finished with 12 and 11 kills, respectively, while senior middle hitter Te’Ayla Whitfield (Fort Wayne, Indiana) added nine kills, a .300 attacking percentage and a match-high five blocks.

USI (12-15, 5-9 GLVC) also received seven kills apiece from sophomore outside hitter Lindsey Stose (Elkhart, Indiana) and sophomore right side hitter Amanda Jung (Belleville, Illinois). Stose also had a .429 attacking percentage.

Defensively, senior libero Shannon Farrell (Munster, Indiana) led the Eagles with 20 digs, while junior defensive specialist Haley Limper (Springfield, Illinois) and freshman defensive specialist Callie Gubera(Thorntown, Indiana) respectively chipped in 12 and nine digs. Farrell needs just 35 digs to break the program’s career mark of 1,848, currently held by former USI standout Kayla Heldman.

USI returns to action Saturday at 3 p.m. when it hosts the University of Missouri-St. Louis for Senior Day at the PAC. The Eagles will honor their four seniors—Farrell, Whitfield, defensive specialist Jessica Lee(Mackinaw, Illinois) and outside hitter Shelbi Morris (Brazil, Indiana)—prior to Saturday’s match.

The Tritons (19-7, 9-6 GLVC) earned a four-set road win over the University of Indianapolis Friday night.

Set 1
Quincy used a 13-4 run and a .318 attacking percentage to grab the nine-point win in the opener. Coleman and Jung each had three kills to pace USI.

Set 2
The Eagles used a blistering .440 attacking percentage to pick up the eight-point win in the second frame. Coleman and Whitfield each had three kills to lead USI, which had runs of 5-0 and 9-3 to even the match at a set apiece.

Set 3
USI had five blocks in the third set, including two in the final six rallies, to pull out a two-point win and take a one-set lead over the Hawks. Whitfield had four blocks in the third set to lead the Eagles, who led 22-19 before being forced to fight off set-point at 24-23.

Set 4
The Eagles used a 9-0 run midway through the stanza to take control of the fourth set. Stose had four kills to lead USI, which held Quincy to just four kills and .000 attacking percentage.