NASHVILLE, TN - The Western Illinois Volleyball team had its first road conference series of the season, with two matches against Tennessee State.
FRIDAY
The Leathernecks won the first match on October 2nd at 6 p.m. with a 3-1 victory.Â
This match saw four back-and-forth sets, with the first of which saw the Leathernecks hold leads of 2-0, 10-4, 13-8, and 15-13, before Tennessee State stormed back to tie up the match. Western Illinois took a 22-19 lead before the Tigers won six straight points to win the set 25-22.
The rest of the match was all Leathernecks, with set two being close early, with Western being down 5-9 at one point, before going on a four-point run to tie the set up at 9 a piece. The teams continued to go back and forth, with both holding leads throughout the rest of the set. But after the set score was tied at 18, the Leathernecks took control and were able to come out on top 25-21.
Set three saw a more lopsided outcome, with Western Illinois jumping out to a 10-5 lead, as well as a 15-7 lead. The teams were more even in scoring from that point forward, leading to a Leatherneck 25-16 set win.
The fourth and final set was one in which the Leathernecks never trailed or were tied at all. The team jumped out to a 2-0 and 5-2 lead and never looked back, being up 22-13 at one point before taking the set with a final score of 25-18. The Leathernecks had 3 separate runs of 3 points or more, as well as a 7-point run, which led to the victory.
The Leathernecks were led in game one by Ashlee Markert with 20 kills, followed by Kennedy Adair with 12. Jaleah Bauss led Western Illinois with both 5 aces and 20 assists, with Madelyn Norton having 18 assists in the game as well. Kennedy Adair led the team with 13 digs, followed closely by Ashlee Markert with 11.Â
SATURDAY
Match two ended as a 3-0 sweep in favor of the Leathernecks on October 3rd.
The first set of this match was one in which the Leathernecks got out to an early 4-1 lead, before Tennessee State tied it up at 4. The two teams traded points until the score was 10-10, before a 6-1 Western Illinois run, bringing the score to 16-11. After that, each team went on their own four-point run, which eventually resulted in a 25-18 win for the set in favor of the Leathernecks.
Set two of the match was also very back and forth, with neither team being able to jump out to a lead bigger than three points, until a 5-point run in favor of Western Illinois brought the score to 21-16. The Tigers tried to fight back, but ultimately the match ended with a final score of 25-23
Set three saw the Leathernecks go on three different runs of three points or more, as well as a 5-point run, which brought them back from a slow 2-5 start to end up winning the set 25-20.
Kennedy Adair was the lone Leatherneck with over 10 kills, having 13 on the match, followed by Ashlee Markert and Georgia Haynes with 8 kills each. Madelyn Norton had two aces for Western Illinois and was also second on the team with 15 assists, only trailing Jaleah Bauss' 18. Kennedy Adair also led the team with 10 digs, followed closely by Karlie Lane and Ashlee Markert with 8.
NEXT TIME
The Leathernecks will face UT Martin on October 16th and 17th at home in Western Hall, which will be the third series of OVC play and another chance for the Leathernecks to get more wins this season.
FOLLOW THE LEATHERNECKS
For the latest information on Western Illinois Volleyball, visit GoLeathernecks.com. Fans can also follow the Leathernecks on social media.
