Trio of Hornets reach double-digit kills in four set defeat against Lions
Emporia State exchanged rallies with Missouri Southern throughout the match before falling in four sets.
In the first set, Missouri Southern jumped ahead 5-2 before five straight points capped off by back-to-back service aces for Megan Stretton gave the Hornets a 7-5 lead. The Lions then scored six of the next seven to take a three point advantage before the Hornets scored seven of eight to take a three point lead of their own at 15-12. After the Hornets scored three straight to regain the lead again at 20-18, the Lions called timeout before scoring seven of the final eight points in the set to take a 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-21 win in the first set.
Emporia State controlled much of the second set as they scored the opening point and would not relinquish their advantage throughout the set. After three consecutive points by the Lions halfway through the set to trim the Hornet lead to just 11-9, Emporia State regained the momentum with five straight points which saw a pair of kills by Zuzanna Buchnajzer. The Hornets continued to improve their lead as they went on to take the second set 25-15 and even up the match 1-1.
The Lions responded quickly in the third set as they took seven straight points before an Ainslee Stepp kill stifled the rally. Emporia State fought back to eventually take their first lead in the third set 12-11. The largest advantage for the Hornets came after five straight points, including three more kills from Buchnajzer, gave the Hornets an 18-15 lead. Missouri Southern was able to rally and eventually win the set 25-21 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Both the Hornets and Lions traded points throughout most of the fourth set with four lead changes in the final set. The final of the four lead changes came with the Hornets leading 21-19 before the Lions scored six of the final seven points to win the set 25-22 and clinch the match 3-1.
Zuzanna Buchnajzer led the Hornets with 12 kills in the match while Leah Mach and Orianna Clements both reached double-digits with 11 and 10 respectively. Riley Bernskoetter and Ainslee Stepp combined for 40 assists while Bernskoetter led the way with 23 of her own. McKenya Sorrells and Winny Harris each recorded three total blocks while Shelby Ebert led the Hornets with 23 digs.
Emporia State will be back in action from White Auditorium on Thursday, October 27 against Pittsburg State for senior night. The match is scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m.
Original source can be found here.
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