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CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois (7-7, 1-0 OVC) volleyball wins their opening Ohio Valley Conference match against SIUE (5-7, 0-1 OVC) in four sets in Lantz Arena. It is their first OVC opening win since the 2018 season. Panthers combined for 53 kills in the match including 32 from Kaitlyn Flynn and Giovana Larregui Lopez. The match scores were: 25-21, 15-25, 25-16, 25-19.

Flynn was dominant on First Mid Court as she helped EIU capture their first home win of the season.  She posted a .234 hitting percentage along with three service aces. She was one of six Panthers to record a service aces (season-high 11 aces for Eastern). Flynn also contributed nine digs on the defensive side.

Larregui Lopez was hitting powerful strikes all night against the Cougars. She posted three aces along with 15 kills, her most since Sept. 2 at Chicago State. Lopez also recorded her fifth double-double of the season against SIUE with 12 digs. She also faired well at the net with a .256 hitting percentage.

Defense was key in the win for the Panthers as Christina Martinez Mundo posted 29 digs against the Cougars, her second highest dig count of the season. Her effort provided a spark for EIU on offense and led to multiple points. She also chipped in seven assists.

Lilli Amettis (10 kills) and Annika Black (five kills) provided help at the net for EIU. Black posted a .455 hitting percentage while Amettis hit a .450. Catalina Rochaix and Summerlyn Smith both came in at the setter position and willed EIU to a win. Rochaix posted 24 assists with Smith tallying 16. 

Blockers were in full force today at the net with EIU combining for 8.5 blocks. Black posted three block assists and Kate Dean hit four back onto SIUE's side to help secure the win. Emily Wilcox also collected three block assists and two kills for the Panthers.

EIU had a team hitting percentage of .194 while SIUE was held to a .167. The Panthers also hit a total of 49 assists the the Cougars 43 and collected 11 aces while SIUE had four.

The Cougars were led by Ainsley Ranstead and Sydney Hummert with 12 and 11 kills. Hummert also had 17 digs for a double-double. Caroline Waite led all setters with 26 assists while also punching down two kills. The Cougars drop to 5-7 on the season with an 0-1 record in the OVC.

EIU and SIUE will be back in action tomorrow, Sept. 2 at 4 p.m. in Lantz Arena. Livestats and ESPN+ will be made available.