Volleyball Takes Two Paths to 2-0 Triangular in Point Lookout
POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. (November 4, 2014) -- For the second time in three seasons, the Golden Eagle volleyball team (20-10) picked up a pair of non-conference victories by defeating Williams Baptist (Ark.) by a 3-1 score (25-15, 25-17, 23-25, 25-15) before coming back from a 2-1 hole to take down Ozarks (Mo.), 3-2 (25-23, 24-26, 26-28, 25-10, 19-17).
Junior outside hitter Melissa Bakke picked up her second-straight double-digit kill output by throwing down a team-best 13 kills in the win over Williams Baptist. Junior outside hitter Tiffany Hunnicutt landed fifth double-digit kill effort of the season by chipping in with 12 of her own. Sophomore setter Shayna Daniels earned a double-double by dishing out a game-best 23 assists while finishing as one of three Golden Eagles in double-digit digs (10) and added a trio of service aces. Junior outside hitter Libby Blasingame came off the bench to provide eight kills and four block-assists.
The Golden Eagle defense gobbled up 80 digs and limited WBC to a mere .097 hitting percentage on the afternoon, including a -.023 percent in the second set. JBU faltered in the third set, but used a .355 percent in the first set and a .429 percent in the fourth to finish the match at .246 percent.
The second match against the Bobcats featured a back-and-forth affair as John Brown captured the first set after a pair of Becca Young service aces broke an 8-8 tie. JBU would never trail after the point despite three-straight Golden Eagle errors allowed C of O to close within one, 22-21. A Bakke kill ended JBU’s streak and delivered the first set. The second set saw the visitors down 24-21, but a late rally, courtesy of an Audrey Dearien kill and two Bobcat errors, tied the match at 24 apiece. The Bobcats captured the final two points to pull even with JBU.
The third set again featured a 24-all tie, but this time the teams would trade points until Ozarks managed a kill from Jenny Wuerffel that setup a John Brown error. With the hosts clinging to a 2-1 lead in the match, the Golden Eagles responded with a resounding 25-10 victory behind six Dearien terminations. In the fifth and deciding set, a pair of Molli Pugh spikes sent John Brown to a 4-1 lead. The Bobcats would eventually knot the score seven times down the stretch, but Daniels’ second service ace of the match followed by a Bakke kill from Daniels ended the set in thrilling fashion, 19-17, and featured another JBU victory.
Dearien pounded a match-high 20 kills in the win and picked up the double-double with 20 digs. Bakke poured in 14 terminations while Blasingame notched 10 kills and seven blocks. Daniels (29) and freshman setter Alyssa Arnold (20) powered the Golden Eagles to 59 assists on 63 kills. Bakke also landed a double-double by grabbing 12 digs as Young earned a game-best 24 digs in the win.
John Brown continued its consistent hitting, finishing with a .204 hitting percentage (63-25-186) while limiting the Bobcats to just .125 on the night (60-35-200). JBU picked up 105 digs, a season-high, and 10 team blocks, fueled by Blasingame and helped by four more from senior outside hitter Vanessa Uhrhahn and a pair from Hunnicutt, Bakke and Pugh.
The Golden Eagles will continue its final week of regular season action when it faces Texas Wesleyan on Friday (Nov. 7) at Bill George Arena. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
