MARYVILLE, Mo. - The No. 18-ranked Emporia State University Hornets posted a 3-0 sweep of the Northwest Missouri State University women's volleyball team Friday at the MIAA In-Season Tournament in Bearcat Arena.
ESU won by set scores of 25-13, 25-16 and 25-23. The Hornets moved to 18-3 overall. Northwest dipped to 7-11 overall. The match was a non-conference match but did count as a regional encounter.
Northwest finished with 36 kills. Emporia State also had 36 kills and hit .298. The Hornets totaled 10 service aces, including six in the opening set.
Northwest started the opening set with a
Mya Karrick service ace and an
Ava Plassmeyer kill, but Emporia State answered by turning a 4-2 deficit into an 8-4 lead.
Abby Bulthuis stopped that stretch with a kill from
Ellery Luhring, and the Bearcats later got consecutive points from
Gabrielle Gartner and
Elle Heckenlively to cut the set to 11-7. After
Chloee Hayes put down a kill and Bulthuis followed with a service ace to make it 12-9, Emporia State created more separation with the next six points.
Sophia Gartner and
Gabrielle Gartner each added kills late for Northwest, but ESUÂ closed out the set 25-13.
The Bearcats could not recover after the Hornets answered a
Gabrielle Gartner kill that brought the set to 6-5 with five straight points, leaving Northwest down 11-5. Bulthuis stopped that stretch with a kill from
Londyn Smith, and the Bearcats continued to get points from
Sophia Gartner, Plassmeyer and Karrick through the middle of the set. Bulthuis delivered back-to-back Northwest points on kills from Karrick and
Londyn Smith to cut the deficit to 16-12, but ESU responded with the next three points.
Sophia Gartner and Plassmeyer added consecutive late kills to move the score to 22-16 before ESUÂ took the final three points to finish the set 25-16.
Northwest pushed the third set to a 23-23 tie after falling behind 22-19, but Emporia State scored the final two points to take the set 25-23. Earlier, the Bearcats built an 11-4 advantage by winning seven of eight rallies, with
Lauren Schnettler serving a four-point stretch that included a Bulthuis kill and blocks involving Karrick and Plassmeyer. Emporia State worked back into the set and tied it at 17-17, but
Jada Smith answered with a kill and Luhring followed with a service ace to put Northwest ahead 19-17. ESU then turned a 19-18 deficit into a 22-19 lead before Smith had two late kills, Karrick added a service ace and
Gabrielle Gartner's kill brought the Bearcats even at 23-23. ESU scored the final two points to close out the three-set win.
Gabrielle Gartner led Northwest with 11 kills while hitting .364 and added one block assist. Gartner notched her 10th double-figure kill match this season. Luhring collected a team-high 17 digs and added six assists. Karrick collected her ninth consecutive double-double with 21 assists and 11 digs, and she also had two service aces and two blocks.
The MIAA In-Season Tournament continues Saturday with No. 5 Nebraska-Kearney taking on No. 18 Emporia State at 3 p.m. The Bearcats will play host to Central Missouri following the UNK-ESU matchup at approximately 5 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.
