LEXINGTON, Ky. ? In an evenly-matched contest, Austin Peay State University's volleyball team saw its continuing offensive struggles highlighted as it was swept by Cleveland State, 3-0 (30-26, 30-24, 30-28), Friday night, at the Kentucky Classic.
The Lady Govs were out-hit in each of the match's three-games on their way to a fifth consecutive match being out-hit by their opposition. Friday night's tally went 58-44 in favor of Cleveland State and included a .253 to .159 margin in attack percentage.
Austin Peay (3-3) was opportunistic in jumping out to a 6-1 lead in game one ? Szymska recording a kill for the match's first point which Cleveland State followed with five attack errors to give APSU its early lead. The Vikings offense settled in though and followed with a 9-4 run to tie the game, 10-10. The two teams would battle through eight ties down the stretch before CSU put together a game-ending 6-2 run to seal the 30-26 victory.
Game two was another close affair as Cleveland State (4-2) grabbed the lead out of the gate only to watch Austin Peay come back to take an 8-6 lead. The Vikings scored five straight points to build a four-point, 14-10, advantage. After the two teams traded points, APSU freshman Sarah Alisaleh posted back-to-back service aces as part of four consecutive points to tie the game, 15-15, and force a CSU timeout. That timeout proved effective as the Vikings scored five of the next six points to build another four-point lead, 20-16, and would not look back.
The match's third game was a story of scoring runs. Cleveland State put together a 5-0 run after Austin Peay built a two-point lead. The Lady Govs battled back and retook the lead, 13-12, on four consecutive points. However, the Vikings put together another five-point push to take a 17-13 lead. Austin Peay would get the match even again and the two teams battled through five ties over the ensuing 16 points. Three consecutive points would give APSU a 25-23 lead and force a CSU timeout, which again stopped the run with APSU leading 25-24. Cleveland State had one more push left and used a 5-1 scoring run to take a 29-26 lead. The Lady Govs were able to score twice, but could not force overtime, falling 30-28.
“I believe tonight came down to experience,” said Lady Govs head coach Jenny Hazelwood. “We had some long rallies but couldn't sustain our momentum when we need to. We continue to see good leadership from our returnees but the freshmen have a lot to learn. I believe we'll get there in time for conference play.”
Szymska led the Lady Govs for the sixth time this season with 14 kills and was joined in double-digit kill territory by sophomore Kirstin Distler who finished with 10 kills. Alisaleh finished the match with four service aces, her fourth four-ace match this season.
“Dodi and Kristin continue to be strong four us up front and carried us tonight,” said Hazelwood. “Sarah has gotten some big serves for us throughout the season and tonight was no different as she put down some good serves at crucial moments.”
Liz Fazio led Cleveland State with 14 kills while Jenni Ramminger and Amy Benz each finished with 11 kills and .400-plus attack percentages. The Vikings used an eight-block night to stifle the Lady Govs offense, Ramminger and Benz each posting four blocks.
Austin Peay returns to action with a 10 a.m. contest against host Kentucky. The Lady Govs close out their stay in Lexington with a 5 p.m. affair against Georgetown.
- AP -
