ARKADELPHIA, Ar. – Missouri S&T Women's Volleyball closed out the 2024 Reddie-Tiger Invitational with a win over Southeastern Oklahoma State and a loss versus St. Mary's.
Game One Recap vs. Southeastern Oklahoma State (3-2 W)
Starting off day two of the Reddie-Tiger Invitational, Missouri S&T won a five-set thriller over Southeastern Oklahoma State.
The Miners dominated the first set with a 25-12 win. They started off the match with a six-point run that eventually made the score 12-4 midway through the set. A four-point Savage Storm run got them within four, but the Miners made it 15-8 with a three-point run of themselves. S&T quickly took a 22-11 lead with a six-point run. Alina Carrillo (Oviedo, FL/Hagerty) capped it off with a kill. Carrillo ended the set 25-12 with a service ace.
Southeastern Oklahoma State found a rhythm in the second set as they topped the Miners 25-22. The Savage Storm took an early 9-6 lead that quickly extended to 14-8. The Miners were within one point after a six-point run made the score 19-18. Jordan Burton (Olathe, KS/Olathe South) tallied three kills in that run. Southeastern Oklahoma State took it from there and won the set 25-22.
In the third set, the Savage Storm took a commanding 25-11 victory to go up 2-1 in the match. Carrillo collected three kills in the set but the Miners went down early and could not respond.
Missouri S&T tied up the match via a 25-19 victory. The two teams were back-and-forth early but after a 5-4 deficit, the Miners went on a 9-1 run to take a commanding 13-6 lead. Lexi Kosmopolis (O'Fallon, IL/Newsome) tallied two kills in the run. The Savage Storm answered the run and came back within one point to make the score 16-15. A kill from Carrillo, an attacking error and two kills by Madison Offerman (Herscher, IL/Herscher) made the score 20-15. In a back-and-forth end of the set, Madison Smith (Boonville, MO/Boonville) ended the set with a kill to force a fifth set.
The two teams remained back-and-forth for the majority of the fifth set. At a 5-5 deadlock, Carrillo slammed one down for a kill but the Savage Storm responded with two points to take a 7-6 lead. The Miners tied the set back up at 11-11 when Gabrielle Reynolds (Andover, KS/Andover) recorded a kill. With a 13-12 deficit, the Miners rallied off three straight points to take the match. Anaya Roberts (San Antonio, TX/Brennan) tied the set, Kosmopolis gave the Miners a lead and Carrillo's ace put the match away.
Carrillo was tied for the match lead with 17 kills. She also recorded 16 digs to pick up her first double-double of the season. She also chipped in three blocks and two aces. Smith collected 12 kills in 23 attempts with no errors for a .522 hitting percentage. She picked up five blocks. Offerman tallied eight kills, six digs, an ace and two blocks. Jordan Burton (Olathe, KS/Olathe South) and Kosmopolis each had six kills and Roberts added four. Setter Elise Mehaffy (Marion, IA/Marion) had 39 assists, nine digs, three blocks and two aces. Avery Jones (Broken Arrow, OK/Broken Arrow) collected 16 digs and Reese Massey (Kansas City, MO/Staley) had 15. Kosmopolis chipped in 12.
Game Two Recap vs. St. Mary's (3-1 L)
Missouri S&T fell to St. Mary's 3-1 to conclude the 2024 Reddie-Tiger Invitational.
The Rattlers took the first set with a score of 25-18. S&T took command early with a 7-2 lead to begin the match. After a service error made the score 10-8, St. Mary's went on a five-point run to take the lead 13-10. The Miners could not answer and fell 25-18 to go down 1-0 in the match.
Missouri S&T tied the match in set two, guided by a 25-16 victory. They went up early 6-1 thanks to a four-point run and two kills from Carrillo. At the mid-way point of the set, the two teams traded four-point runs but a Miners five-point run gave them a 23-14 edge. Offerman closed out the set with a kill.
In the third set, St. Mary's recorded a 25-15 victory to go up 2-1 in the match. S&T went up 8-6 early but a five-point Rattlers run snuffed any Miners momentum as St. Mary's eventually went up 18-12. They eventually won the set by a final score of 25-15.
The Miners responded well in the fourth set but the Rattlers took a 27-25 edge to win the match. As both teams went on runs in the early part of the set, St. Mary's went up 17-12 halfway through the set. S&T responded with a four-point run to go down one point and eventually took a 23-21 lead. A kill and two aces gave St. Mary's a 24-23 lead but an attack error tied the set. After both teams traded kills, Olivia Rubio made it 26-25 and an attack error ended the match.
Carillo set a new career high with 25 total kills with 17 digs, four blocks and a .333 hitting percentage. She was one kill from tying the Missouri S&T single-game match record set by Emilee Schlader in 2019. Over the whole weekend, Carillo totaled 60 kills, 44 digs and nine blocks.
Burton followed Carillo with nine kills in the match and a .304 hitting percentage. Offerman and Smith both picked up four. Defensively, Offerman recorded eight blocks. Mehaffy collected two kills, 22 assists, five blocks and seven digs. Jones totaled 15 digs and six assists, while Reese Massey (Kansas City, MO/Staley) had 12 digs.
What's Next
The Miners will stay on the road next weekend as they will travel to Quincy, Illinois, for the Quincy Classic. Their first game is gainst Maryville on Sept. 13 at 5 p.m. On Sept. 14, they will play Winona State at 1:30 p.m. and Quincy at 7:30 p.m.
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