WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle volleyball team suffered a pair of losses on Saturday to fall to 4-3 on the season. The Eagles were swept by No. 10 Washburn (25-20, 25-19, 25-15) before losing in three sets to McKendree (25-18, 25-12, 25-5) in the evening.
No. 10 WU 3, ERAU 0
Washburn hit .200 or better in all three sets, ending the match with a .240 attack percentage, while ERAU was only able to muster a .129 hitting percentage in defeat.
Paola Virella led the Eagles with eight kills and picked up 12 digs, while
Maile Spenser collected a match-high 16 digs.
Jordan Nakayama tallied 17 assists and
Alyssa Rudd had 11 for the Blue and Gold.
The Eagles jumped out to a 4-1 lead early in set one, but it didn't take Washburn long to get its offense going and near the midway point of the set, the Ichabods had a 14-11 lead. ERAU battled back to tie it at 15-15 on an
Amanda Saunders kill, but Washburn regained control of the set with a 7-1 run that put the Ichabods in front, 22-16. WU eventually won the set by a score of 25-20.
In set two, Embry-Riddle used a 7-3 run in the middle stages of the frame to take a slim 17-16 lead. But Washburn fought back and closed out the set on an 8-1 run to win by a 25-19 score and take a 2-0 lead.
The third set saw WU go on a 13-5 run that turned an 8-6 lead into a commanding 21-11 advantage. The Ichabods went on to win the set, 25-15, securing the 3-0 match victory.
MU 3, ERAU 0
The Eagles struggled offensively against the Bearcats, hitting just .087 with 18 kills as a team. McKendree totaled 50 kills and hit .402 for the match.
Saunders and
McKenna James each had four kills for ERAU, while Spenser picked up a team-high eight digs. Nakayama and Rudd each tallied eight assists.
A 7-0 run for the Bearcats gave them control of the first set at 22-14 and MU would go on to win the set, 25-18.
Set two saw McKendree go on a 10-3 run to increase a 6-3 lead to double-digits at 16-6. The Bearcats took set two by a 25-12 score to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
In the third set, MU won 16 of the first 19 rallies and never let the Blue and Gold back into the frame, pulling away for a 25-5 win and a 3-0 sweep.
The Eagles are back on the court on Tuesday, Sept. 13 when they host Florida Tech in the 2016 home opener. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. inside the ICI Center.
