INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – It was an early start and a late night for the Missouri S&T volleyball team on day one of the UIndy Invitational Friday at the Ruth Lilly Center, but the long day did not stymie the Miners (5-1), as they opened their weekend with a 3-1 (25-18, 20-25, 25-22, 25-23) win over (RV) Wheeling (3-3) in the opening match of the day before dispatching Bemidji State (0-6) 3-2 (18-25, 25-20, 25-10, 22-25, 15-11) to extend their winning streak to four matches heading into action Saturday.
 
Missouri S&T drew one of the first three matches of the day Friday against preseason 23rd-ranked Wheeling. The Cardinals scored two of the first three points before S&T notched five of the next six behind a trio of kills from Payton Gannaway (Lawrence, KS/Lawrence Free State) to take the lead and never look back. The Miners led comfortably for much of the set, keeping Wheeling at arm's length behind a .387 hitting percentage in the set to pick up a 25-19 win.
 
Set two saw S&T get on the board first as the Miners first three points in the second stanza all came courtesy of Jordan Burton (Olathe, KS/Olathe South). The Green & Gold maintained their advantage as the set progressed, with Kiernan O'Boyle (Kansas City, MO/St. Teresa's Academy) recording a pair of kills and a service ace, while Shelby Ply (Rolla, MO/Rolla) led the way up front defensively, getting back-to-back block assets with Avery Reed (Ste. Genevieve, MO/Ste. Genevieve) and Hannah Merjil (Bakersfield, CA/Garces Memorial) to make it 10-4 in favor of the Miners. The S&T lead would extend to six at 15-9 before the Cardinals went on a 9-0 run to take control of the set at 18-15 before going on to even the match with a 25-20 win in set two.
 
Set three got underway with the Miners scoring first on a block from Ply and Merjil before Wheeling scored four of the next six to lead 5-3. The Cardinals held their lead until at 9-4, S&T went on a 6-0 run led by Gannaway and O'Boyle to get right back into contention in the set. After exchanging points, the Miners surged in front, getting kills from Ply and Reed while Gannaway added a pair of aces to make it 15-12. Wheeling would not go quietly in the set through, twice rallying to get within one point in the closing moments but were unable to regain the lead as S&T retook the match lead with a 25-22 win.
 
The first two points of the fourth set went to Missouri S&T by way of a pair of Wheeling errors, as  both teams played each other close through the first 13 points before the Miners rattled off another 6-0 sequence that saw kills from Ply and Gannaway along with two aces from Reed to make it 13-6. Things seemed to be well in hand for S&T after kills from O'Boyle and Gannaway made it, 17-11 but Wheeling showed why they were a Top 25 preseason selection, scoring the next seven points to take the lead at 18-17. Despite losing their lead, S&T responded under pressure and retook the lead for good just four points later and wrap things up with a kill from Burton take set four 25-23 to open the weekend with a win.
 
Gannaway logged 21 kills in the match to lead the way offensively, while Burton added 15 and hit .300 in the match. Merjil dished out 31 assists and recorded a double-double with 11 digs, while Katarina Seres (Belgrade, Serbia/Ninth Gymnasium) added 19 assists of her own.  Meiko Pearson (Overland Park, KS/Blue Valley Northwest) posted a team-high 20 digs, while O'Boyle and Ply recorded six and five blocks respectively.
 
In the second match of the day opposite Bemidji State, S&T dropped the first set as they struggled to find their rhythm after the long layoff between matches. The Beavers led for all but one point in the set, going on to win 25-18 to start the evening.
 
In set two, the Miners got on the board first, and answered the bell after dropping set one. With the score close through the opening stages of the set, a BSU error and back-to-back aces by Payton Gannaway (Lawrence, KS/Lawrence Free State) pushed the Green & Gold ahead at 9-6 and they wouldn't look back. Avery Reed (Ste. Genevieve, MO/Ste. Genevieve), Shelby Ply (Rolla, MO/Rolla) and Gannaway paced the offense as the Beavers were kept at arm's length as S&T took the set 25-20 to even the match at 1-1.
 
It was all Miners in the third set of the match from start to finish, as the Beavers had no answer for S&T's offense, which hit an eye-popping .519 and went on several scoring runs to take command of the set and the match. Kiernan O'Boyle (Kansas City, MO/St. Teresa's Academy), Burton and Gannaway got things going to start as the Miners took the set 25-10.
 
Bemidji State would not go quietly into the night however, as they got on the board first in set four. Things were close in the early going before S&T took an 11-9 lead by way of a pair of kills from Burton that bracketed a BSU error, but that lead would be a short-lived one as the Beavers clawed their way back to tie things at 13-13 before taking the lead with a 4-1 run to make it 17-14. Missouri S&T was able to get within one point at 23-22 late, but couldn't complete the rally, falling 25-22 as the match headed to a decisive fifth set.
 
In the final stanza of the night, neither team gave an inch in the early offing, matching each other point for point until S&T scored six of seven led by Gannaway and Reed to surge in front 8-5. Bemidji state battled back once more and evened things up at 11-11 before the final four points of the night went the way of the Miners, as a kill from O'Boyle wrapped things up 15-11 with a 3-2 match win.
 
Gannaway reached the 20-kill mark in a match for the third time this season, finishing the night with 21 and a .294 hitting percentage, while collecting eight digs, a season-high six service aces and being in on five blocks during the action. Burton posted 16 kills and a .371 hitting percentage while Reed carded her second 10 kill match of the season. Hannah Merjil (Bakersfield, CA/Garces Memorial) posted a pair of season high marks, finishing with 48 assists and five kills while adding three blocks and notched her second double-double of the day with 10 digs in the nightcap. O'Boyle added six kills of her own and was in on seven blocks during the match to bring her team-leading total to 27, and Meiko Pearson (Overland Park, KS/Blue Valley Northwest) led the team with 11 digs.
 
Missouri S&T will be back in action to conclude the weekend Saturday with a pair of matches, first against the host Greyhounds (3-3) at 10 AM ET before taking on Winona State (6-0) at 2 PM ET.