HORNETS TAKE HOME SATURDAY SPLIT

Women's Volleyball | 8/27/2022 3:24:00 PM

Box Score August 27, 2022 - Emporia State claimed the first victory of the 2022 season with a 3-1 win over Southern Arkansas before falling to Missouri S&T in straight sets.

Game One

In the first set, Emporia State and Southern Arkansas traded points early on and with a 10-9 lead, the Hornets went on a 6-1 run to open a 16-11 advantage on the Mulerider. The lead would be trimmed to 21-19 later in the set before Emporia State responded with four of five points to take the opening set 25-20. 

The second set started similarly to the first with both team trading points. Empoira State would eventually open up a lead and was able to hold off Southern Arkansas to stay in front and take the second set 25-19. 

After falling in the third set, 25-12 Emporia State was able to respond in the fourth. The Hornets were able to grab an 11-8 lead after back-to-back service aces from Riley Bernskoetter. The Muleriders responded and eventually had a 24-22 lead with set point to force a final fifth set. Emporia State answered with five of the next six points including the final three on Shelby Ebert kills to clinch the set and the 3-1 match victory.

Orianna Clements and Shelby Ebert both recorded 14 kills in the match to lead the Hornet attack. Riley Bernskoetter and Ainslee Stepp each recorded over 20 assists, with 26 and 21 respectively. In defense, Megan Stretton recorded 25 digs to lead the way.

Game Two

In the first set, Missouri S&T jumped out to a big lead early as the Hornets were unable to generate any attack against the Miners. Emporia State was eventually able to stem the tide, but the Miners kept their distance to take the first set 25-16. 

The Hornets fell behind again at the beginning of the second set with the Miners taking a 13-7 lead halfway through the set. Following an Emporia State timeout, the Hornets were able to score three straight points and trimmed the deficit down to three. Missouri S&T was able to limit the Hornets' momentum and eventually pulled away in the set to win 25-17 and take a 2-0 lead in the match. 

Emporia State got the jump on Missouri S&T in the third set, scoring the first six points. The Miners fought their way back to take a 15-11 lead on the Hornets. Emporia State then scored three straight to trim the deficit to just one point before the Miners were able to take control of the set and eventually win 25-18 and take the match 3-0 over the Hornets.

In attack, Leah Mach led the way eight kills while Shelby Ebert added seven. Ainslee Stepp tallied 11 assists and Megan Stretton recorded 11 digs.

Emporia State will travel to the UCO-OC Tournament on Friday, September 2 to take on Southern Nazarene and Oklahoma Christian. The match against Southern Nazarene is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. and the match against Oklahoma Christian will take place at 6:00 p.m.