SSU VB drops 3-0 decision to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods

SAINT MARY-OF-THE-WOODS, Ind. -- The volleyball program at Shawnee State got another strong defensive output from Ava Jenkins while first-year collegiate volleyball talents Maelynn Howell and Camille Hall each hit above .300, but the Bears fell to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (Ind.), 3-0 (21-25, 15-25, 23-25) in a River States Conference matchup that was held at the Jeanne Knoerle Sports and Recreation Center in Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind.

Match Highlights

Initially, Shawnee State opened up a 9-7 first set advantage over Saint Mary-of-the-Woods -- as Howell, along with Camille McIntosh, Kylee Gifford and Megan Steele, each claimed a kill while Gifford and Whytney Faulkner teamed up for a block en route to giving the Bears an early lead over the homestanding Pomeroys.

SSU continued to stay one step ahead of SMWC over the first 35 volleys of the match -- as two kills by Howell and a kill each from Wamsley, Gifford and Faulkner allowed the Bears to collect an 18-17 advantage. However, an 8-3 run by the Pomeroys -- including a 5-1 push over the final six volleys -- gave Saint Mary-of-the-Woods the opening set.

Shawnee State recovered at the start of the second set and played strong over the first dozen volleys of the set -- as Howell, Wamsley and McIntosh nabbed kills with Wamsley obtaining a solo block to help Shawnee State keep the second set deadlocked with Saint Mary-of-the-Woods early on.

Gifford then went on her best hitting spree of the match as the senior sprayed in three spikes while Howell and Wamsley each added one apiece to help SSU pull within a 14-13 tally of SMWC after falling behind by a 10-7 margin, but the Pomeroys responded with an 11-2 run to collect a 25-15 triumph in the second set.

Despite the 2-0 set deficit, Shawnee State came out and played arguably its best volleyball of the match in the third set of action.

Tied in a 3-3 lock with Saint Mary-of-the-Woods early in the aforementioned frame, the Bears then proceeded to go on an 8-1 run as Hall, who arguably played the best volleyball of her young career during the stretch, ripped off four kills over a 10-volley stretch to put Shawnee State ahead by an 11-4 count.

Saint Mary-of-the-Woods rallied to pull within one point later in the third frame, but behind Steele's three spikes and one kill each from Hall, Howell and Wamsley, it appeared that Shawnee State would keep the Pomeroys at bay as the Bears took a 23-20 lead heading into the closing stages of the set. However, a late 5-0 run by SMWC closed the deal on the match.

Additional

Hall's five kills on a .444 attack percentage and Howell's six kills on a .250 attack mark led Shawnee State's frontline, while Steele added in seven kills and eight digs to boot. Gifford posted six kills and two blocks while Wamsley collected four kills and three blocks.

On the backline, Jenkins' 21 dives proved to be big for the Shawnee State defense, while Makaela Lovely and Reagan Lewis posted 12 assists apiece with the latter also adding eight digs for the Bears as well.

Shawnee State (10-8, 3-3 River States Conference) will turn right around and play Saturday afternoon as the Bears take on No. 11 Indiana-Kokomo (20-4, 7-0 River States Conference) in a match that will be held at the Student Activities and Events Center in Kokomo, Ind. Game time is set for 12 p.m.