MOREHEAD, Ky. - Austin Peay State University's volleyball team got its five-match road trip off to a good start, posting a 3-1 (22-25, 25-19, 25-14, 25-23) Ohio Valley Conference victory against Morehead State, Friday night, at Wetherby Gymnasium.

Austin Peay (18-6, 11-2 OVC) got off to a slow start offensively, recording just 12 kills while committing seven attack errors in the first set. Morehead State had no such troubles, posting 18 kills against eight errors. The Lady Govs led the opening set, 8-4, before surrendering six straight points - including three straight courtesy attack miscues. The Eagles held that lead throughout the set and won 25-22.

The Lady Govs controlled sets two and three nearly wire-to-wire. The second set in particular was an impressive display of Austin Peay's offense as it recorded 17 kills and committed no errors (.486 attack percentage) and rolled to a 25-19 win. The third set saw the Lady Govs offense cool, recording 12 kills and a .310 attack percentage. Morehead State helped APSU's cause, committing five attack errors and four service errors as the Lady Govs won 25-14.

Morehead State (17-8, 9-4) threatened to push the match to a fifth set, grabbing an early lead in the fourth set. The Eagles led by as many as four points, 12-8, only to watch the Lady Govs respond with a 12-2 run to take a 18-14 lead. Morehead State closed that gap to one point several times the rest of the way, but could not force a tie. Junior Jessica Mollman ended the match with a kill, giving APSU a 25-23 set win.

Austin Peay won at Wetherby Gym for only the second time in its last eight visits and swept the regular-season series. The Lady Govs also maintained pace with league leader Jacksonville State (13-0) in the OVC's regular season race while gaining some breathing room with third-place Morehead State, which fell a full two matches back.

Seniors Stephanie Champine and Kirstin Distler led the Lady Govs offensive effort. Champine finished with 21 kills - her second consecutive outing with more than 20 kills - and a .258 attack percentage. Distler had 11 kills and no errors to finish with a .407 attack percentage.

Austin Peay recorded 56 kills and a .263 attack percentage in the match. The Lady Govs also won the front-row defensive battle with a 9-6 advantage in blocks while narrowly losing the back-row battle on a 74-70 digs deficit.

Ellie Roberson led Morehead State with 14 kills. The Eagles out-hit the Lady Govs with 57 kills but also committed 29 attack errors to finish with a .169 attack percentage.

Austin Peay continues its road trip with an 11 a.m. (CDT), Saturday contest at Eastern Kentucky.

- AP -