Game One Box Score |
Game Two Box Score
GREEN BAY, Wisc. – The Eastern Illinois volleyball team was slated to play two games on the opening day of the Country Inn & Suites Green Bay Invitational to start the 2016 season. The Panthers faced Stephen F. Austin in the early morning match and finished the day facing the host team, Green Bay, in the nightcap. The Panthers were defeated in both games by scores of 3-1 and 3-0 to start the tournament. EIU will wrap up tournament play at 1 p.m. tomorrow against South Dakota State.
Game One: Stephen F. Austin 3, EIU 1
The Panthers opened up the 2016 season winning the first set in their match against Stephen F. Austin, but the Ladyjacks stole the momentum away from the Panthers and won the contest 3-1 (25-21, 24-26, 15-25, 16-25).
After starting the first set trailing 2-0, the Panthers rallied for four-straight points started by a kill by
Maggie Runge to take a 4-2 advantage. EIU extended their lead to as many as six points midway through the first set at 13-7 following a block by
Taylor Smith and Runge and then an attacking error by SFA. Stephen F. Austin would pull to within a single point late in the first set, but a late rally by the Panthers capped off by a Runge kill gave Eastern a 25-21 decision in the first set.
The second set was a back-and-forth affair between EIU and SFA as the largest lead by either team would come at 13-10 in favor of Stephen F. Austin. The Panthers would work their way back into the set and tie the score at 18-18 on a kill by
Maria Brown. The score between the two teams would be tied four more times before SFA would earn the final two points on back-to-back kills by Makenzee Hanna and Haley Coleman to level the contest at one set apiece heading into the break following a 26-24 win.
Stephen F. Austin used two Panther errors to their advantage to begin the third set as the Ladyjacks would not trail during the set. After a kill by
Josie Winner moved the score to 13-8 still in favor of SFA, the Ladyjacks would go on a 5-0 run before Eastern Illinois took a timeout with the score at 18-8. The timeout broke the SFA momentum as the Panthers would score four of the next five points, highlighted by two kills by
Abby Knight to cut the deficit to 19-12. The Panthers tried to rally late, but SFA would take the third set 25-15.
SFA carried their momentum over from the third set into the fourth set and took a 10-1 lead on the Panthers before another Knight kill broke a 5-0 run by Stephen F. Austin. EIU would cut the Stephen F. Austin lead to six points at 13-7 on a
Maria Brown ace and once again at 17-11 on an
Alissa Danosky ace. The Panthers would score three-straight points to put the score at 22-16 late, but SFA used a three-point run of their own to take the final set 25-16 and the game 3-1.
Winner led the EIU attack with nine kills while adding 13 digs. Powers and Runge led the EIU defense in their first collegiate game. Powers totaled 17 digs in the match while Runge posted seven blocks.
Game Two: Green Bay 3, EIU 0
The Eastern Illinois volleyball team looked to bounce back after a tough loss in the morning session to start the Country Inn & Suites Green Bay Invitational, but were swept in straight-sets in the night cap by the host team (10-25,13-25,19-25).
The two teams traded leads to begin the first set and were knotted up at 5-5 following a kill by
Hayley Richardson. Green Bay would begin to pull away scoring eight-straight points before a service error to put the score at 13-6. Green Bay finished the set on a 12-4 run and won the first game by a score of 25-10.
Katie Sommer pulled EIU within one point at 3-2 to start the second set, but once again Green Bay would use a big run to pull away from the Panthers. Green Bay would go on a 10-0 run before a kill by Brown would end the rally with the score at 15-4. The Panthers would use a rally of their own late in the set to score seven-straight points highlighted by two kills each from Winner and Knight to cut into the Green Bay lead at 21-12. The host team would score four of the final five points to take the second set 25-13.
The Panthers took an early 2-1 lead to begin the fourth set with the help of two Green Bay errors. The two teams went back-and -forth trading three point runs as Brown found a hole in the Green Bay defense to tie the score at 6-6. Green Bay began to pull away in the middle of the set as the Panthers tried to rally late, but Green Bay would win the match following a 25-19 victory in the third set.
Runge paced the Panthers as she finished with six kills and four blocks. She added two digs to her match totals. Brown ended the match with eight digs as Smith and Powers added seven each.
