EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Volleyball (0-1, 0-0 OVC) held a 2-1 set lead before allowing Murray State University (1-0, 0-0 MVC) to come back and defeat the Screaming Eagles 2-3 in five sets (25-18, 18-25, 36-34, 26-18, 14-16). This was the Eagles first NCAA Division I match since joining the Ohio Valley Conference in early 2022.
USI tallied its first set win in the NCAA Division I era after taking down the Racers, 25-18, in set one. Junior outside hitter Leah Anderson (Bloomington, Illinois) recorded a set-high seven kills.
Murray State, however, took control of the second frame after rallying for five and four straight points to defeat USI, 18-25. The Racers threw down 18 kills and held a solid .394 attacking percentage compared to the Eagles eight kills and .207 attacking percentage.
Set three brought a lot of action as USI and Murray State went back-and-forth to finish with a 36-34 final to give the Eagles a 2-1 set lead. USI started off solid after sophomore defensive specialist/outside hitter Anna Ballengee (Montgomery, Indiana) served up three straight Eagles’ rallies to gain an early 6-5 lead. The Racers would retaliate with an 8-2 run to take a 14-9 advantage. After three kills by sophomore outside hitter Abby Weber (Fishers, Indiana) and multiple attack errors by Murray State, USI went on an 8-2 surge and cut the deficit, 21-20. To cap off a brilliant third frame, junior outside/right side hitter/setter Katherine Koch (Belleville, Illinois) struck…
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