MARTIN, Tenn. - Eastern Illinois defeated UT Martin 3-0 on Friday night in their first road conference match of the 2023 season. The victory moves their OVC record to 2-0 and overall record to 12-1. Tonight's set scores were 25-14, 25-19, and 25-20.
The Panthers had no problem dispatching of the Skyhawks in the opening set, as they used a 9-2 run to separate from UTM and take a 1-0 advantage. In the set, Giovana Larregui López and
Kaitlyn Flynn had four kills apiece while hitting at an average of .667 and .600, respectively. Meanwhile,
Catalina Rochaix posted double-digit assists with 10.
The second set was neck-and-neck halfway through with both teams tied at 12, but then EIU exploded for five unanswered points as part of a 6-1 run. Eastern kept Martin at arms-length for the rest of the set and went up 2-0. Larregui López and Flynn once again led the EIU offense, this time matching each other with five kills. Larregui López finished the set with an overall hitting percentage of .600.
Christina Martinez Mundo made some nice defensive plays as she racked up nine digs in the set.
The Panthers led the whole way in set three, as
Kaitlyn Flynn powered her way to another five kills to help lead EIU to their twelfth victory of the season.
Natalie Mitchem also bolstered the EIU attack with four kills in the set.Â
Kaitlyn Flynn led the EIU offense with a match-high 14 kills and .423 hitting percentage. She also added a block solo and block assist to her scoring efforts.
Giovana Larregui López had another strong showing, picking up her third straight double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs. She also recorded a .417 hitting percentage. It was her fourth contest of the season with a hitting percentage north of .400.
Natalie Mitchem also had a solid performance with nine kills for an average of three kills per set.
Catalina Rochaix handed out 30 assists on the night, recording exactly her average of 10 assists in each set. It was her eleventh match, and seventh consecutive, with 30 or more assists.
Christina Martinez Mundo again led the Panthers in digs with a match-high of 21 for an average of 7.0 digs per set. It was her seventh match with at least 20 digs.
Eastern finished with a team total of 8.5 blocks. They were led at the net by
Natalie Mitchem with two solo blocks and a pair of block assists.
The Panthers will return to action on Saturday at 2 p.m. as they complete their two-game series with the Skyhawks.Â
