FAYETTE, Iowa – Missouri S&T's women's volleyball team was victorious for the fifth straight time Friday night as it dispatched Upper Iowa in four sets, winning by scores of 26-24, 14-25, 25-18 and 25-20 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference match.
The Miners (16-9, 7-5 GLVC) who moved into the 10
th spot in the NCAA Division II Midwest regional rankings this week, led for nearly the entire first set but had a tough time putting away the Peacocks (10-16, 5-7 GLVC). S&T had a 6-1 lead to open the set and led by six at 19-13 before Upper Iowa made a surge to get back into things. The Miners had two set points that the Peacocks averted, but kills by
Madelyn Mason (Mount Horeb, WI/Mount Horeb) and
Alina Carrillo (Oviedo, FL/Hagerty) finished the set off in S&T's favor.
Set two was all Upper Iowa, as the Peacocks hit .387 in the set, but the Miners rebounded in set three by holding the hosts to a .024 attack percentage and forced them into 10 attack errors. S&T went in front early on a kill by Carrillo and never trailed after going up 2-1, going up by six after
Madison Offerman (Herscher, IL/Herscher) was in on back-to-back blocks, first with
Shelby Ply (Rolla, MO/Rolla) and then a solo block to put the Miners up 18-12.
The Miners closed the set with another block as Mason and Ply combined on the team's fifth of the set.
Upper Iowa had the lead early in set four, but after S&T tied the score at five on a kill by Carrillo it never trailed again. The Peacocks tied the score at seven, but a UIU attack error put the Miners back in front and then a 9-3 surge later in the set – where four different Miners recorded kills – put the Miners well in control of the set to finish off the win.
S&T, which hit .201 in the match, was led by Carrillo with 15 kills. Mason and Ply added 10 apiece – Ply also recorded six block assists – and
Jordan Burton (Olathe, KS/Olathe South) finished with nine kills.
Annie Arand (Washington, MO/St. Francis Borgia) and
Elise Mehaffy (Marion, IA/Marion), who was playing in her home state, had 21 assists apiece and
Mia Alessio (Channahon, IL/Minooka) finished with 18 digs.
Missouri S&T closes out its regular season schedule Saturday with a game at Truman State, beginning at 6 p.m. in Kirksville, Mo. S&T will open play in the GLVC Tournament on Friday in East Peoria, Ill.
