September 13, 2024 – Emporia State Volleyball opened the Tiger Classic on Friday with a five-set win over former MIAA foe Truman State.
The Hornets took control in the first set, building a 19-8 lead, and despite a late push from Truman State, Emporia State closed out the set 25-16 as they forced 11 attack errors from the Bulldogs in the first frame.
Set two was flipped from the first as the Hornets trailed the Bulldogs early and struggled to get their offense going throughout much of the set. Emporia State hit just .037 in the second set and were kept a distance as Truman State was able to tie the match 1-1.
Emporia State bounced back with their most efficient attacking set of the match in set three, as they hit .325 with just four errors. The set went back-and-forth between the Hornets and Bulldogs with Truman State eventually holding a 20-19 advantage following a kill and a pair of service aces. After trading points and the Bulldogs holding a 23-22 lead, kills from
Rayishon Jackman and
Camilla Ossola, followed by an error gave Emporia State the 25-23 win in set three.
In the fourth, neither the Hornets nor the Bulldogs were able to take advantage until Truman State rallied towards the end. A kill by Jackman closed the Bulldog lead to 18-17 late in the set but Truman State scored eight of the final ten points to close the set with a 25-19 win, forcing a fifth.
Following an opening kill by the Bulldogs, a trio of Truman State errors and a kill from both
Rayishon Jackman and
Weronika Wrzesinska gave the Hornets a 5-1 lead and forcing a timeout. Out of the break, the Bulldogs grabbed two points back before Emporia State put together a 6-1 scoring run as they lead grew to 11-4 in the final frame. With the Hornets later leading 12-8, a kill by
Camilla Ossola, a
Sydney Fiatte service ace and a Truman State error gave the Hornets the 15-8 win in the final set, clinching the 3-2 win in the opener of the Tiger Classic.
The five-set win is the first for the Hornets under
Ken Murczek.
Emporia State was led in attack by
Weronika Wrzesinska,
Rayishon Jackman and
Camilla Ossola who had 15, 13 and 12 kills respectively. The match against the Bulldogs was the first time since October 6, 2023, that the Hornets had three players reach double-figures. Wrzesinska hit .344 in the match and was one of four players with double-digit digs.
Brailee Bogle had 44 assists and 14 digs while also recording five total blocks which was tied with
Mia Frisbie for the team-high.
Willow Deckinger recorded her first career match with ten or more digs, tallying 13 on Friday.
Emporia State will have two matches on Saturday, September 14 when they return to action in the Tiger Classic. The Hornets will begin the day against UC-Colorado Springs at 10:00 a.m. before ending the weekend against Northwestern Oklahoma at 2:00 p.m.
