SSU VB swings past WV Tech in four (17-25, 25-16, 25-15, 25-19)

BECKLEY, W. Va. -- In its latest tear, the volleyball program at Shawnee State has not only found a rhythm, but have also regrouped when the going has been rocky.

Devan Spriggs' group did just that once again in a River States Conference matchup against the West Virginia Tech Golden Bears' volleyball program, as Shawnee State, trailing by a 1-0 margin in the match after dropping a 25-17 decision in the opening set of play against the Golden Bears, rallied back in commanding fashion by taking home the final three sets -- 25-16, 25-15 and 25-19 -- to collect its fourth straight match win and its eighth victory over the last 10 contests overall.

Quick rundown:

Shawnee State, who moved to 14-9 overall and 7-4 in the River States Conference with Tuesday's victory, hit .266 on the attack compared to West Virginia Tech's (10-15, 6-7 River States Conference) .131 and blocked 11 spikes of the solo variety as well.

Each of Shawnee State's four main attacking threats -- Haidyn Wamsley, Kylee Gifford, Whytney Faulkner and Camille McIntosh -- hit at least .222 or better with Faulkner, Gifford and Wamsley nabbing .320 or better marks on the attack.

Makaela Lovely continued to star in the primary assist role, nabbing 44 dimes and 12 dives to collect her second double-double in a row, her third such statline in the last four matches and the fifth double-double of the 2024 season for Lovely. The junior also posted a match-high three service aces to boot in the contest.

Faulkner also added in the second double-double of the season and of her career with an 11-kill, 10-dig line -- accomplishing that mark all within the last three matches.

With its eighth win over the last 10 matches, the Bears now have their most victories over such a stretch since winning eight of its first 10 matches to begin the 2021 season. That SSU squad ultimately won 11 out of its first 15 affairs.

Set highlights:

Quickly bouncing back up off of the canvas after a 25-17 defeat in the opening set, Shawnee State responded to the early setback by roaring out to a 9-3 lead to begin the second frame of action, getting two kills from Kylee Gifford, a kill by Haidyn Wamsley and a block from Wamsley and Makaela Lovely to force West Virginia Tech to call an early timeout.

Back-to-back solo blocks by Maelynn Howell and Gifford, along with kills from Gifford, Camille McIntosh and Maelynn Howell then allowed Shawnee State to collect a 16-6 advantage -- and from there, the Bears held the point all the way out to a 25-16 second set triumph as McIntosh and Faulkner combined for four kills over the final 14 volleys of the second frame to even the match at one set apiece.

After three ties and four lead changes over the opening 11 points of the third set, Shawnee State took control in a big way by going on a 14-5 run that saw Wamsley post four kills while Gifford added in three spikes of her own to go along with a solo block as the senior duo dominated the middle portion of the third frame. Wamsley then added two additional spikes to help close the deal over the final 11 volleys of the third set, giving SSU a 25-15 third-set triumph.

Six ties and seven lead changes into the fourth set later, Shawnee State took off again on an even larger spurt -- as the Bears went on a 10-0 run that included two of Makaela Lovely's three service aces, two Haidyn Wamsley kills, a solo block from Whytney Faulkner and 1.5 blocks each from Wamsley and Maelynn Howell.

Holding a 15-6 lead by this point, SSU kept firm control over the remainder of the match as the Bears didn't allow West Virginia Tech to come any closer than five points of the lead over the remainder of the fourth set, taking the frame, and the match, with a 25-19 decision.

Additional

Wamsley and Gifford each led the way offensively, posting 14 kills each on attack percentages of .444 and .344 respectively. The pair also posted three total blocks each -- as Wamsley nabbed a solo block and two assisted blocks while Gifford's three denials were all of the solo variety.

In addition to nabbing the second double-double of her young career, Faulkner also hit an efficient .320 while posting the aforementioned 11 kills and 10 digs -- and adding in two solo blocks to boot -- while McIntosh also posted 10 kills en route to hitting .222 for the match. Maelynn Howell nabbed another strong defensive performance on the frontline, matching Gifford's defensive output with three solo blocks while adding in an assisted block to lead the Bears with four total blocks.

Along with Lovely and Faulkner, Megan Steele's 15 digs and Brooke Bossert's 10 led Shawnee State's backline.

With Tuesday's victory, Shawnee State will turn around to face its archrival in Rio Grande (22-8, 10-2 River States Conference) in what could very well be an important match for conference tournament seeding. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Newt Oliver Arena in Rio Grande.