SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Missouri S&T women's volleyball picked up their second consecutive win on Friday night, defeating Illinois Springfield in four sets after beating Southwest Baptist last Saturday.
Adelyn Weiler (Ste. Genevieve, MO/Valle Catholic) recorded 29 digs in the match, surpassing 500 digs on the season.
The Prairie Stars built a 6-2 lead in the opening set, but the Miners answered with a five-point run to take a 12-11 advantage. S&T pulled further ahead later in the set with a 10-2 run that featured three kills by Grae Hunter (Oconomowoc, WI/Oconomowoc) and two aces from Maggie Miller (Gretna, NE/Gretna). Illinois Springfield responded, however, taking nine of the final 10 points to claim the opening frame.
Danielle Wilke (Palmer Lake, CO/Palmer Ridge) and Kate Zipprich (Hardin, IL/Calhoun) each contributed two kills early in the second set, while Madison Smith (Boonville, MO/Boonville) added an ace to give the Miners a 5-2 advantage. Later, an ace by Chelsea Plunkett (Chesterfield, MO/Marquette) and a double block by Smith and Wilke helped S&T build a 16-8 lead during a six-point run. The Prairie Stars cut the deficit to four in the closing moments of the set, but the Miners finished on a 4-2 run to even the match at one set apiece.
The third set featured six early ties, with the teams deadlocked at 12-12. Coming out of the tie, Kaitlyn Brady (Springdale, AR/Rogers) capped a 5-1 run with an ace, giving the Miners a 17-13 lead. Addie Schoenberger (Menomonee Falls, WI/Sussex Hamilton) contributed a block and a kill to help S&T maintain its advantage late in the set, allowing the Miners to close on a 5-0 run and take a one-set lead.
Smith and Schoenberger fueled an 8-4 run to open the fourth set, with Schoenberger recording three kills in a four-point span. Selin Ozdemir (Ankara, Turkey/Bilim) added a pair of kills during a subsequent 5-0 S&T run, extending the Miners' lead to 13-5. The Prairie Stars managed to cut the deficit to four, but S&T responded with a 5-1 run to take a 20-12 advantage. The Miners then closed out the match with a kill by Smith to secure a 25-15 set victory.
Mining the Numbers
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Weiler's 29 digs brought her season total to 505, making her just the sixth Miner in program history to record 500 digs in a season. She also tied Bridget Williams for the eighth-most digs in a single season in program history.
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The Miners improved their hitting percentage in each set, finishing strong with a .324 hitting percentage in set four.
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Smith recorded five blocks in the match, surpassing her previous season high and bringing her season total to 120 blocks.
What's Next
The Miners wrap up their season tomorrow at 3 p.m. with a match at Quincy University.
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