BROWNSVILLE, Texas – After losing their first match of the season Friday night to No. 1 Texas at Brownsville, the fourth-ranked ERAU volleyball team responded with a 3-0 sweep of Our Lady of the Lake on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the Eagles improve to 9-1 on the season, while OLLU falls to 1-14 overall.
The Blue and Gold got off to a sluggish start, falling behind 5-2 early in the first set. A quick 5-1 spurt got them going, as a service ace from Nina Kontrec put the Eagles in front, 7-6. Later in the set, a 7-1 ERAU run, keyed by two Taylor Martin service aces, extended the margin to 14-8. The Eagles wouldn't allow the Saints to get any closer than that for the remainder of the set, closing it out at 25-17.
The second set started out close, with OLLU staying with a couple of points for the first dozen or so rotations. The Eagles would break things open with an 8-2 run that grew the lead to 20-13, and a kill from Jordan Holcomb would finish the set at 25-18.
Embry-Riddle started out the third set much stronger than any of the other sets they played this weekend, jumping out to 13-3 lead as Adriana Vazquez served nine straight points for the Blue and Gold. A kill from Erin McIntyre pushed the score to 20-10, and an Alison Wade spike moved the Eagles to match point at 24-14. Two points later, Holcomb put the Saints away with a kill to end the set, 25-15, and the match, 3-0.
Holcomb led the Eagles with eight kills while Martin contributed seven kills and a .368 hitting percentage. Gloria Kemp and Morgan Shattuck each chipped in six kills and Shattuck added a match-high five blocks as well. Kontrec picked up a match-high 16 digs to go along with a match-high three service aces. Vazquez ran the offense, tallying 20 assists as the Eagles hit .305 as a team.
Margaret Nurse paced the Saints with six kills and Amanda Bonds added five kills and five digs. Brittany Putney registered a team-high eight digs and Desirea Aguilar recorded a team-high 13 assists in addition to picking up six digs.
The Eagles will return to the ICI Center on Wednesday, September 21, for a 7 p.m. match against NCAA II Flagler College. Last season, the Eagles rallied from two sets down to defeat the Saints 3-2 on Senior Night in St. Augustine, Fla.
