Friday, August 31
Provo, Utah
5:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
2-3
1
vs
3
Wichita State
4-0
1
2
3
4
F
West Virginia
25
22
19
16
1
Wichita State
22
25
25
25
3
Photo by: Steven Prunty
WVU Drops Match to Wichita State
August 31, 2018 08:44 PM | Volleyball
PROVO, Utah – The West Virginia University volleyball team was unable to overcome offensive struggles, as the Mountaineers suffered a 3-1 loss to Wichita State in its second match of the BYU Nike Invitational Friday evening, held at the Smith Fieldhouse, in Provo, Utah. The Shockers (4-0) took the match from the Mountaineers (2-3) in set scores of 22-25, 25-22, 25-19 and 25-16.
"I thought we did some nice things out there, but we weren't consistent enough," fourth-year coach Reed Sunahara said. "We talk to our team about being consistent all the time, and that's what we have to do. Every time we have a match or practice, it is a learning experience, and we need to learn from today."
Freshman outside hitter Kristin Lux had a team-best 14 kills for WVU, followed by junior outside hitter Katelyn Evans with 12. Junior right side hitter Natania Levak rounded out the Mountaineers in double-digits with 10, hitting .296 in the match.
Sophomore defensive specialist Lindsay Proctor had a team-high 15 digs, followed by sophomore defensive specialist Alexa Hasting with 12. Junior Erin Slinde also had 25 assists, splitting time at setter with freshman Lacey Zerwas, who dished out 14 assists.
Sophomore middle blocker Katie DeMeo led the blocking effort with five block assists, followed by freshman middle blocker Kristin Jordan and Lux with four each.
WVU finished the match hitting .191 with 48 kills and 13 team blocks.
Both teams traded points early in the first set before the Mountaineers used a 3-0 scoring run to their advantage for a 15-13 lead. The Shockers took a timeout to regroup, but were not able to regain the lead down the stretch. A kill from Levak gave the Mountaineers a four-point edge at 19-16, but the Shockers did not back down, notching back-to-back points to cut their deficit to two. A powerful swing from Evans put WVU at set point, 24-21, with a Wichita State attacking error ending the frame in favor of the Mountaineers at 25-22.
With the second set tied at 15-all, Wichita State used a kill from Tabitha Brown, as well as two Mountaineer miscues, to its advantage and never looked back. A kill from Levak brought West Virginia within one, but back-to-back points from Wichita State put the score at 23-20 in its favor. Jordan and Lux each put one through the pins to come within one once again, trailing 23-22. However, the Shockers reached set point out of a stoppage, scoring on another kill from Brown. WSU eventually won the set on a Mountaineer attacking error, claiming the 25-22 victory to tie the overall match at one apiece.
Attempting to carry momentum into the third stanza, WVU tied the set at 10-10 on a kill from Lux. However, the Shockers rolled to three straight points for the 15-12 advantage following a Mountaineer attacking error. Both squads continued to exchange points, but West Virginia never found the momentum to match Wichita State, as another three-point scoring streak gave WSU the 23-17 lead. Another Shocker kill put the squad at set point, but West Virginia capitalized on a Wichita State attacking error to keep the set going at 24-19. However, Brown was able to find the middle of the floor for the 25-19 win and the 2-1 Shocker lead.
WVU started the fourth set in a 14-4 hole, as WSU scored five of six points midway through the set. The Mountaineers used a four-point scoring run of their own, cutting the deficit to six at 15-9, but the Mountaineers couldn't climb out of the hole. A pair of WSU kills gave the Shockers the 25-16 triumph, with WVU dropping the match, 3-1.
The Mountaineers conclude the 2018 BYU Nike Invitational Saturday evening, as they square off with No. 1 Stanford (2-0) in a 7 p.m. ET tilt.
Live stats and video can be found at WVUsports.com.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUVolleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
"I thought we did some nice things out there, but we weren't consistent enough," fourth-year coach Reed Sunahara said. "We talk to our team about being consistent all the time, and that's what we have to do. Every time we have a match or practice, it is a learning experience, and we need to learn from today."
Freshman outside hitter Kristin Lux had a team-best 14 kills for WVU, followed by junior outside hitter Katelyn Evans with 12. Junior right side hitter Natania Levak rounded out the Mountaineers in double-digits with 10, hitting .296 in the match.
Sophomore defensive specialist Lindsay Proctor had a team-high 15 digs, followed by sophomore defensive specialist Alexa Hasting with 12. Junior Erin Slinde also had 25 assists, splitting time at setter with freshman Lacey Zerwas, who dished out 14 assists.
Sophomore middle blocker Katie DeMeo led the blocking effort with five block assists, followed by freshman middle blocker Kristin Jordan and Lux with four each.
WVU finished the match hitting .191 with 48 kills and 13 team blocks.
Both teams traded points early in the first set before the Mountaineers used a 3-0 scoring run to their advantage for a 15-13 lead. The Shockers took a timeout to regroup, but were not able to regain the lead down the stretch. A kill from Levak gave the Mountaineers a four-point edge at 19-16, but the Shockers did not back down, notching back-to-back points to cut their deficit to two. A powerful swing from Evans put WVU at set point, 24-21, with a Wichita State attacking error ending the frame in favor of the Mountaineers at 25-22.
With the second set tied at 15-all, Wichita State used a kill from Tabitha Brown, as well as two Mountaineer miscues, to its advantage and never looked back. A kill from Levak brought West Virginia within one, but back-to-back points from Wichita State put the score at 23-20 in its favor. Jordan and Lux each put one through the pins to come within one once again, trailing 23-22. However, the Shockers reached set point out of a stoppage, scoring on another kill from Brown. WSU eventually won the set on a Mountaineer attacking error, claiming the 25-22 victory to tie the overall match at one apiece.
Attempting to carry momentum into the third stanza, WVU tied the set at 10-10 on a kill from Lux. However, the Shockers rolled to three straight points for the 15-12 advantage following a Mountaineer attacking error. Both squads continued to exchange points, but West Virginia never found the momentum to match Wichita State, as another three-point scoring streak gave WSU the 23-17 lead. Another Shocker kill put the squad at set point, but West Virginia capitalized on a Wichita State attacking error to keep the set going at 24-19. However, Brown was able to find the middle of the floor for the 25-19 win and the 2-1 Shocker lead.
WVU started the fourth set in a 14-4 hole, as WSU scored five of six points midway through the set. The Mountaineers used a four-point scoring run of their own, cutting the deficit to six at 15-9, but the Mountaineers couldn't climb out of the hole. A pair of WSU kills gave the Shockers the 25-16 triumph, with WVU dropping the match, 3-1.
The Mountaineers conclude the 2018 BYU Nike Invitational Saturday evening, as they square off with No. 1 Stanford (2-0) in a 7 p.m. ET tilt.
Live stats and video can be found at WVUsports.com.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUVolleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
WVU
WSU
Kills
48
56
Errors
23
24
Attempts
131
143
Hitting %
.191
.224
Points
64.0
65.0
Assists
47
52
Aces
3
4
Blocks
13.0
5.0
Game Leaders
Kills
14
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
3
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
MB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
DS
/ VolleyballRS
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
S
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