The volleyball team swept North Florida and Jacksonville at home over the weekend to finish perfect in the Convocation Center on the season.
The Owls, who are on an eight-match winning streak, now have four straight, and 12 total, sweeps.
Almost everyone chipped in against North Florida on Friday. KSU had four players with double-digit kills, with senior Katarina Morton tallying 15. Senior Kristi Piedimonte had 33 assists and finished with a career-high eight digs.
On Saturday, the Owls faced off against Jacksonville for KSU’s senior night. Seniors Morton, Piedimonte, Alex Huber, Morgan LaVigne, Anaiah Boyer and Rachel Taylor were honored before the game. The seniors finished their home careers with a huge 3-0 sweep that put the Owls in first place in the ASUN Conference.
“It’s hard to imagine a better way for this senior class to go out in the Convo in front of a great crowd like that in a match that meant so much in the conference race,” said head coach Keith Schunzel. “I could not be prouder of our mentality tonight, the way we prepared, the way we handled the emotions of the night and the way we controlled the match from start to finish.”
The Owls’ defense was huge yet again, holding Jacksonville to a .046 hitting percentage for the match. Junior Liesl Engelbrecht led the KSU defense with six blocks.
KSU will finish the regular season with road matches against Stetson on Friday and Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday. They swept both teams in previous matchups this season.
The Owls have won five straight against Stetson and have not lost to them since 2014. In the match earlier this season, KSU had a .311 hitting percentage and finished with 49 kills to Stetson’s 28. Boyer led the Owls in kills that game with 13.
KSU will finish their season on Saturday when they take on FGCU and started hot in their last matchup. Boyer and sophomore Maddie Jones set the tone with six blocks each in the first set. The Owls rode their defense the rest of that match and took it 3-0.
Should the Owls win their final two matches, they would be on a 10-match winning streak, their second longest in the history of the program. If they can keep the momentum going, they will be the top seed heading into the ASUN Tournament on Thursday, Nov. 16.
