RICHMOND, Ky. – Lipscomb volleyball took out some aggression Friday night in its ASUN Conference opener, blasting Eastern Kentucky in straight sets (25-14, 25-18, 25-22) inside McBrayer Arena.
The Bisons (4-8, 1-0 ASUN) had lost seven of their last eight matches entering the night after playing the 15th-toughest schedule in the nation during nonconference action. The growing pains from those contests paid off against the Colonels, earning Lipscomb a convincing victory.
A trio of purple and gold athletes earned double-digit kills, led by Caroline Stogner's 13 on a .310 clip. She also added six digs and a team-high three aces.
Addi Pelham and Jada DiVIta each contributed 11 with the former swinging .360 behind just two errors in 25 attacks.
Sophia Hudepohl orchestrated the attack with her first-career double-double. She picked up a career-high 40 assists and 10 digs. Libero Delaney Smith powered the back line with a season best 22 digs and six helpers.
Lipscomb will look to finish off its three-week road trip on Saturday with a 3 p.m. battle in Louisville against Bellarmine.
FROM THE BENCH – HC BRANDON ROSENTHAL
I am really excited for the girls and for everybody as we really came out and put an all-around effort out there.
We talked about it all week, that transition from preconference to conference and what that looks like. There were some big matches on Wednesday and Thursday around the country, so our girls already had an idea that you had to bring it in conference, no matter who you are or where you are.
Our execution was phenomenal tonight. Our serving did a nice job of adding some pressure. In the first set we did a great job blocking, but we could have been better the rest of the way.
To see our serving get tougher as the match went on, I was happy to see that because it's something we've been missing. Looking down the stat sheet, the distribution was fantastic.
When we are at our best, we are trying to get somewhere in that 17-19 kill range so obviously in sets two and three to have 18 and 20 was really, really good.
I thought our defense was incredible tonight. Our defense was anchored by Smitty (
Delaney Smith) and she had a huge night with 22 digs, but I think all around, I just loved the energy.
We were also able to bring some people off the bench for key moments, so it was good to see production from everybody.
With what we did with our preconference schedule, I cautioned the team and I'd caution anyone that conference play is different. You have to bring that energy and effort every night. There is just too much parity in the game. The girls worked really hard this week and I couldn't be more proud of the girls.
I am excited about getting to Louisville and putting our focus on Bellarmine. They are going to be a scrappy team that lost in five tonight, so if you don't bring the energy they're gonna make you pay for it. We know what we have to do when we get there.
SET 1
- EKU led early and held a slight advantage at 10-9 before the Bisons went on a tear.
- Lipscomb got back-to-back kills from DiVita and Mischler before Meg Mersman delivered an ace to send the Bisons on a 16-4 run to close the first frame with a 25-14 victory.
- Libby Steinhart planted the set-clinching ace to finish off a 5-0 set-closing spurt.
- Lipscomb outhit EKU .276 to .000 and had only four errors in 29 swings.
- The Bisons earned 14 digs and three blocks in the set.
- Stogner, Mischler and DiVita each had three kills, while Mersman recorded a pair of blocks.
- There were six ties and four lead changes.
SET 2
- Like the opener, EKU held a lead midway through at 12-11 before the Bisons put their foot down again.
- Pelham, Mischler and DiVita recorded four kills in the next five points to help Lipscomb close the set 14-6 and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
- The Bisons outhit the Colonels .277 to .211 with 18 kills to just five miscues.
- Hudepohl assisted on 15 of the 18 kills while adding five digs.
- Stogner and DiVita led the way with five kills, while six Bisons in total landed swings.
- Smith was a machine with 13 of her 22 digs in set two.
- There were seven ties and three lead changes.
SET 3
- Set three saw the closet battle of the night, despite having just three ties and two lead changes.
- EKU rallied from a 9-6 deficit with five straight points and eventually a 13-11 advantage.
- The Bisons, however, had other plans. They got back-to-back kills from Pelham and mounted a 9-2 run to get back in front.
- Leading 22-21, Lipscomb earned four of the next five points, including the match-clinching kill from Mischler to win 25-22.
- Five different Bisons recorded three or more kills, led by Pelham's six. The junior hit .556 with one error in nine attacks.
- Stogner hit .444 with five kills on nine swings and the Bisons outhit EKU .341 to .303 in the set.
- Hudepohl assisted on 17 of the team's 20 kills, while Smith added a team-high seven digs.
HERD NOTES
- The .299 attack percentage was second-highest of the season (.361 vs TSU).
- The nine service aces were the most since getting 10 at Belmont (8/30).
- The 53 digs were a season high.
- The .176 attack percentage allowed was third lowest of the season for the Bisons.
- Pelham reached 10+ kills for the fifth time this season, while Stogner recorded her fourth such outing.
