Cincinnati, Ohio—Coming off of a home win against Rose-Hulman, the Mount St. Joseph University Volleyball program was back in action on Friday, October 8, playing host to Anderson University. The Lions entered this game (11-7) on the season and (1-1) overall in Heartland Conference play. This game was the second meeting between the two schools on the season, with the Lions defeating the Ravens in straight sets, in a non-conference match. This meeting saw the Lions win the second meeting between the two schools in five sets.
Set One: 25-22 MSJ (1-0)
Set one saw the Lions start strong, scoring the first four points of the match. This hot start saw Freshman Grace Wilking register two Aces, to give her team a commanding lead. Late in the set, the Ravens began to build a comeback down 19-23, scoring three straight points before a Morgan Whitaker kill to earn the Lions set one win.
Set Two: 22-25 (AU) (1-1)
The second set of the evening saw Anderson knot the game back up. This set went back and forth with several lead changes before Anderson was able to take control and win 25-22.
Set Three: 25-15 (MSJ) (2-1)
With the match tied at 1-1, the Lions were able to win the third set in dominant fashion. After going back and forth with Anderson for several points the Mount finally was able to take control of the set with five straight points, highlighted by a Grace Young kill, giving the Lions an 11-5 lead. This huge run gave the Lions a commanding lead and they never looked back on their way to their set three wins.
Set Four: 25-23 (AU) (2-2)
The fourth set saw the Mount jump out to a 19-14 lead. However, Anderson was able to respond with a 6 point rally, to regain the lead at 20-19. At this point in the set, the two teams traded points eventually tying the set at 23-23. However, at this point, Anderson was able to earn two straight points, forcing a fifth set.
Set Five: (18-16) (MSJ) (3-2)
Set five was tightly contested, seeing Anderson jump out to an early 3-0 lead. The Ravens continued to hold the lead throughout the set, with a 13-11 lead, before the Lions assembled a three-point rally, led by two Emily Abshire kills. This led to the Lions eventually winning the set by a score of 18-16.
This game saw several Lions have great performances. Abshire once again turned in a great performance, leading the team with 17 kills. Young additionally added 16 kills for the Lions, while registering a .350 hitting percentage. Brooke Aselage had a solid all-around performance, collecting 12 kills and a game-high 29 digs.
With this win, the Lions improve their overall record on the season to (12-7) and (2-1) in the HCAC. The Lions will return to action on Wednesday, October 13, when they travel to first place, Hanover College. This game is scheduled to start at 7PM. For continued coverage of this upcoming game and all other MSJ Athletics continue to follow msjlions.com
