Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – The winning ways for the Missouri S&T women's volleyball team continued this Friday (Aug. 31) as the Miners won for the fourth time in their initial five 2018 season-opening matches by claiming the advantage in every statistical category to notch a 3-1 decision (30-32, 25-22, 25-20, 25-14) over Babson (Mass.) in opening-round action of the 11th annual Nova Southeastern Shark Invitational at NSU's Rick Case Arena.
 
The successful start for S&T represents the program's best since 2015 when the Miners prevailed in four of their first five contests.
 
Leading the way for S&T were senior outside hitter Carlie Combs (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) and junior outside hitter Emilee Schlader (Lewiston, Idaho/Lewiston) as the pair combined to account for just over 60 percent (38-63) of the team's kills production.  Combs produced a solid all-around performance as she posted a match-high 22 kills and had a .298 attack percentage to go along with a team-most 21 digs and a match-leading four service aces.  Schlader tallied 16 kills for the Miners, who finished the match hitting at .281 efficiency. Junior middle hitter Caroline Dykes (Lawrence, Kan./Lawrence) turned in a productive effort as well by generating a squad-best .643 hitting percentage on nine kills with no errors in 14 attempts.  
 
Redshirt sophomore setter Sarah McGinnis (Middleton, Wis./Edgewood) accounted for 47 of S&T's 61 team assists, which was tops among all players.
 
Defensively, Combs was joined in double-figure digs by a pair of junior defensive specialist-liberos in Corinne Stulce (St. Charles, Mo./Duchesne) and Eva Mich (St. Peters, Mo./Francis Howell Central).  Stulce totaled 16 digs and Mich provided 11 as S&T garnered a 74-61 digs advantage.  Each team accumulated six team blocks in the contest with S&T freshman middle hitter Kiernan O'Boyle's (Kansas City, Mo./St. Teresa's Academy) three assisted blocks coupled with a block solo spearheading the Miners' charge at the net.     
 
Babson, which evened its season record to 1-1 with the loss, was paced offensively by Shannon Roseen with 14 kills.  Abby Beecher and Samantha Hardan cracked the double-digit digs column with 22 and 16 totals, respectively.
 
 
Set 1: BC 32 – S&T 30
S&T held a four-point lead (21-17) only to have the Beavers go on a 8-4 run to pull into a 25-all deadlock.  The Miners were on the verge of winning the opening set five times, which included a 30-29 lead on a Carlie Combs' (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) kill.  But, BC posted back-to-back kills to take a one-point advantage at 31-30 before winning the set on a S&T miscue.
 
Set 2: S&T 25 – BC 22
The Miners broke open a 19-all tie with two straight points and would lead the rest of the way.  Combs, who hammered six kills in the set as did Schlader, accounted for S&T's final four points as the Miners turned in a match set-high .382 hitting percentage.
 
Set 3: S&T 25 – BC 20
 
The third set saw S&T tally a six-point lead at 18-12 before Babson went on a 6-1 spurt to trim the Miners' lead to 19-18.  S&T proceeded to go on a scoring run of its own as the Miners accounted for five of the next six points to make the score 24-19.  The teams then exchanged a kill apiece as Carlie Combs' (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) delivered a kill at match point.  
 
Set 4: S&T 25 – BC 14
 
A quick start proved too much for Babson to overcome as the Miners, who chalked up a .200 attack percentage while holding the Beavers to a -.094 hit proficiency, jumped out to a 11-3 advantage.  S&T would extend its lead to 10 points at 23-13 on a service ace before sealing BC's fate on kills from Carlie Combs (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) and sophomore right hitter Payton Gannaway (Lawrence, Kan./Lawrence Free State). 
 
Up Next: S&T continue this Friday's (Aug. 31) first-day NSU Shark Invitational action as the Miners get set to face host Nova Southeastern at 6 p.m. (CT).
 
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