DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The middle blocking duo of Jenn Meglic and April Ebanks was too much for Warner Southern to handle as the pair recorded 11 kills apiece and hit .556 and .389, respectively in the 3-0 Florida Sun Conference victory (30-25, 30-12, 30-24) against Warner Southern Saturday in the ICI Center.
Meglic was nearly automatic converting 11 of her 18 swings with just one error, while Ebanks was also 11-for-18 attempts with four errors and asserted her authority at the net with 10 block assists and no block errors on the afternoon.
Embry-Riddle has a winning record (13-12) for the first time this season after opening the year 0-5 and are in second-place in the FSC at 8-1, while Warner Southern maintains fourth in the FSC at 3-5 and are 8-13 overall.
The Eagles fell behind early in the first game 6-3, but went on a 10-3 run taking a 13-9 advantage sparked by three Ebanks kills and a service ace by the junior transfer. ERAU maintained its advantage and pushed the lead to 24-16. Warner cut the margin to just three points late at 27-24 after an Eagle service error, but a Savannah Trakes kill and the blocking presence of Ebanks closed out the game with two blocks to prevail 30-25.
Embry-Riddle dominated the final two games, but were probably most impressive in the second jumping out to a 12-1 advantage on the strong jump service of Marissa Gonzales and Jenni Nelsen. Meglic took over the game early on with three kills in the first four points, while Nelsen registered four of her eight service aces in the match in the opening run. ERAU controlled the rest of the game as Warner couldn't stop the Eagles offense which hit .500 for the game with 14 kills in 26 attempts and just one error. Meanwhile, the Royals offense faltered in the second and third games, hitting -.080 and -.143, respectively. The Eagle efficient offensive effort could be attributed to another strong day of passing from libero Rachel Ridder and the rest of the back row. Ridder finished with 14 digs and initiated many of the first passes on serve receive.
Gonzales finished with 15 assists, but Kristen Hassett saw more action playing the entire third game and her height paid dividends with nine block assists and 18 set assists. Shellie Barnwell led the way for Warner Southern with nine kills and added 12 digs.
The final game saw the Eagles jump out quickly once again going on a 10-2 opening run led by three kills by Ebanks and a pair by Jenni Nelsen. The Eagles weren't as strong offensively in the third hitting just .088, but they nursed their early lead to a 30-24 victory.
Embry-Riddle returns to action on Tuesday, October 17 when they host St. Francis (Ill.) at 7 p.m. and then hit the road Friday and Saturday at Northwood and Florida Memorial at 7 p.m. and 12 p.m. respectively. Warner Southern hosts Mountain State (W.Va.) in their next contest also on Tuesday, Oct. 17th at 7 p.m.
