Sangamon Sun

Volleyball Edged by UT Martin in OVC Tournament

SIUE volleyball's season came to a close on Thursday evening at the hands of UT Martin in the opening round of the OVC tournament. Despite the Cougars taking the opening frame, the Skyhawks responded by winning three-straight sets. The set scores were: 25-21, 19-25, 17-25, and 14-25.

SIUE concludes its 2022 season 13-17 overall record. UT Martin improves to 22-10 and will take on No. 5 Southeast Missouri in the semifinals.

SIUE used a .279 attack percentage in the opening frame to win their lone set of the night, 25-21. The Cougars took a one-point lead at 4-3 and never looked back to take a 1-0 advantage.

The Skyhawks found their footing and hit .278 in the second frame, knotting the match 1-1.

SIUE won the opening point of the third set, but UT Martin took the following two and held its lead for the remainder of the set. The Skyhawks improved on the attack, hitting .282 in the frame compared to the Cougars' .167.

Leading 2-1 over SIUE, UT Martin kept its foot on the gas and used a .394 hitting percentage for a 3-1 victory in the match. The Cougars tied the final set early twice, but the Skyhawks prevailed for a 25-14 set win.

Leading the way for SIUE on the attack was Savannah Christian. She finished with 14 kills and a .565 attack percentage. Ainsley Ranstead also added double-figure kills with 10, while Sydney Hummert collected nine. Hummert also led the match with 25 digs, good for a double-double.

Senior Nicole Kijowski finished the match with 19 digs, while Caroline Waite led the Cougars with 21 assists. Alyse Drifka added a double-double with 16 assists and 11 digs.

UT Martin's Karen Scanlon led the match with 19 kills.

Original source can be found here