ROLLA, MO — The Miners split Friday's doubleheader in Gibson Arena, defeating Christian Brothers 3-1 before falling to Northwestern Oklahoma State in straight sets.
Miners 3, Bucs 1
Set one was tightly contested, with neither team leading by more than four points. Addie Schoenberger (Menomonee Falls, WI/Hamilton Sussex) and Selin Ozdemir (Ankara, Turkey/TED Ankara Koleji) each tallied four kills in the frame, including one apiece in the final points to seal a 25-23 win. Set two followed a similar script, but Christian Brothers pulled away late with a 4-1 run to even the match.
The Miners trailed 7-2 early in set three but stormed back with five straight points, highlighted by back-to-back double blocks from Schoenberger and Kate Zipprich (Hardin, IL/Calhoun). A four-point surge at 16-16 gave S&T the separation needed to close out the set 25-21 and take a 2-1 lead.
In the fourth set, the freshman trio of Schoenberger, Elly Decker (Manhattan, IL/Lincoln Way West), and Avery Patton (Lathrop, MO/Truman) sparked a 4-0 start. The Bucs cut the deficit to one, but the Miners controlled the frame from start to finish, hitting .353 en route to a 25-17 victory to secure the match.
Rangers 3, Miners 0
S&T erased an early four-point deficit in set one and built a 21-17 lead, but Northwestern Oklahoma State capitalized on late Miner errors to rally for a 26-24 win.
The Rangers used a long service run by Ece Ozdemir to jump out to an 8-1 advantage in set two, eventually extending the lead to 22-7. The Miners mounted a late rally to pull within 24-21, but ultimately dropped the set.
In the third frame, kills from Decker, Schoenberger, and Ozdemir kept S&T close at 7-6. However, service runs by Ece Ozdemir and Jadyn Padilla allowed NWOSU to pull away, taking the final set 25-12.
Selin Ozdemir (Ankara, Turkey/TED Ankara Koleji) and Decker paced the Miners offensively across both matches with 18 and 16 kills, respectively, while Annie Arand (Washington, MO/St. Francis Borgia) and Elise Mehaffy (Marion, IA/Marion) combined for 54 assists on the day. In match #1, the Miners recorded 22 blocks, with Zipprich picking up a team-high of seven.
What's Next
The Miners return to action today at 4:30 p.m. against Missouri Southern in their final match of the invitational.
