SIOUX CITY, Iowa – A pesky No. 14 MidAmerica Nazarene (MNU) squad reached double-digit points first in all three stanzas, and the No. 11 Eastern Oregon University volleyball team couldn’t keep pace, ultimately falling to the Pioneers in straight sets (25-23, 25-18, 25-19) on Tuesday night in Pool A of the 2015 NAIA National Volleyball Championship.
Key Performances
Junior middle hitter Kasaundra Tuma led EOU with 10 kills on 21 attempts for a .286 clip, while sophomore outside hitter Amanda Miller and junior outside hitter Sierra Linke added nine and eight kills, respectively.
Sofija Berezovska and Lauma Knupke paced MNU with 11 kills apiece. The Pioneers had six service aces compared to just one for the Navy and Gold.
The Storyline
After MNU (27-9) jumped to a 9-3 advantage in the opening set, a Linke kill sparked an 11-5 EOU run to tie the frame at 14 apiece. Sophomore middle hitter Emily Nay hammered one down, and then Nay teamed up with Linke for the block assist to put the Mountaineers on top, 16-14.
After a Miller kill and a Pioneer miscue lifted EOU to a 22-20 advantage, MNU tallied four-straight to reach set point. A Tuma kill kept the Mountaineers around, but Knupke put one away to give MNU a one-set lead.
Once again, the Pioneers scooted to an early lead in the set, claiming a 10-6 advantage in the second stanza after a Berezovska kill. Consecutive kills by Tuma and Miller pulled EOU to within one (14-13), but the Pioneers swung in for four-straight points to pull away and ultimately snatched a 25-18 second-set victory.
A block assist by Tuma and freshman middle hitter Karlee Hollis helped EOU take a 4-1 lead in the third frame. After Knupke and Berezovska brought the Pioneers back and put MNU up by three (12-9), EOU proceeded to pull within one on two occasions before falling behind, 21-16. At match point (24-19), the Mountaineers coughed up an attack error to drop its fifth contest of the year.
Stat of the Match
6 – MNU launched six service aces in the match.
Up Next
EOU (24-5) returns to the hardwood tomorrow against Briar Cliff at 8 p.m. CT.