KSU volleyball showcased plenty of offensive firepower, but still came up empty handed against Atlantic Sun rivals Northern Kentucky and Lipscomb this past weekend.
Against NKU, the Owls took a close five set loss, despite freshman Kelly Marcinek’s 21 kills and sophomore Toure Hopkins’ third double-double of the season.
Down 24-21 in the first set, the Owls fought back to get to within one at 24-23. The rally would fall short, however, as NKU held on to win the opening set, 25-23.
KSU came out swinging early in the second set, going up 1-0 with a Emily Bean kill from a Sara Metroka assist. The Owls held on to that slim one-point lead until the 12-11 mark, when they staged a five point run to make it 17-11. Cierra Royster’s 10th kill of the match sealed the 18-15 set win.
The Norse jumped ahead early in the third set and led for most of it, leaving the Owls with a six point deficit to erase. KSU battled back late to tie things up at 22 before gaining their first lead of the set 23-22 with a Hopkins kill. The game went to extra points, where NKU survived with a 28-26 win.
The Owls were in command in the fourth set, aided by a 6-1 run that gave them a seven point lead. A NKU service error ensured a fifth set, as the Owls took the fourth, 25-15.
Led by kills from Hopkins and senior Emily Bean, the Owls had a early 2-0 lead in the deciding set. However, the Norse rallied back with a 4-0 run and went on to win it, 15-8.
Against Lipscomb, KSU fell short once again with a 3-1 loss. Royster had 13 kills and a career high .407 attack percentage, while Hopkins added 15 kills of her own. The defeat dropped the Owls to a 7-11 record on the season and a 2-6 record in the conference.
“It was a disappointing finish to a tough weekend for us,” head coach Keith Schunzel said. “The good news is we competed very hard during the weekend and we continue at times to play a very high level of volleyball. The next step for us is to consistently play at that level for long periods of time, which is something Lipscomb did today. We will keep fighting and this team will not give up because that’s the kind of people we have in this program.”
The Bison came out to an early 6-1 lead in the opening set. Although the Owls were able to get to within three at 7-4, Lipscomb never relinquished its lead and took the set, 25-16.
KSU evened up the score in the second set with a 25-20 win behind kills from Royster and Marcinek, followed up with a Metroka service ace.
The Owls fell behind 8-3 early in the third set, but rattled off three straight points to cut its deficit to 8-6 on kills from Emily Bean and Keyaira Stevenson. After a combined block from Bean and Royster tied things up at nine, Lipscomb went on a 5-1 run to seal the deal as they went on to win, 25-22.
The Bison pieced together another strong start in the fourth set, going up 6-1 early. The Owls were able to climb back to within three points at 10-7 after a Marcinek kill, but a late 4-0 Lipscomb run led to a 25-15 win to secure the match.
The Owls will now head to Macon to take on in-state rival Mercer on Oct. 19.
