Box Score
FULTON, Mo. -- Junior outside hitter Kristen Bauer collected her 1,000th career kill to help the William Woods University volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-8, 25-15, 25-11) American Midwest Conference victory over Harris-Stowe State University on Wednesday night.
Bauer approached the milestone with her sixth kill of the night that gave William Woods (14-19, 8-1 AMC) an 8-2 lead in the second set. For the match, Bauer collected 11 kills, giving the St. Charles, Mo., native her 21st double-digit kill performance of the season.
The junior was joined by sophomore Emily Becker in the double-digit kill category with her match-high 13-kill performance. Becker put on an outstanding hitting display, as she collected a .500 hitting percentage in the straight set victory. As a team, William Woods hit .393 for the match.
Becker was a dig shy of a double-double, as she collected nine digs for the night. Sophomore defensive specialist McKenna Hisel led the team in digs with 11 and junior libero Abbie O'Mara was able to match Becker's performance by gathering nine. The WWU defense collected 47 team digs, opposed to just 28 for Harris-Stowe (4-17, 0-9 AMC) and held the Hornets to a .013 attack percentage as a team.
William Woods jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the first set to force Harris-Stowe to take an early time out. The Owls were able to push its lead to 15-6 after back-to-back service aces from Emma Aschenbrenner. The sophomore middle blocker served up five straight points to give her team an 18-6 lead. WWU closed out the set on a 7-2 run, capped off by a Becker kill, giving them a 25-8 set one win.
The Owls jumped out to a 6-0 lead to open set two, forcing the Hornets to take an early timeout for the second consecutive set. HSSU pulled to within three points after the timeout, as they trailed William Woods 8-5. WWU used a 7-3 run to extend its lead to 15-8. The Owls built a double-digit lead at 19-9 after a Stephanie Davis' kill. The team's traded the next few points, but Becker was able to close out the set yet again with a kill, this time to give WWU the 25-15 victory.
Harris-Stowe trailed by just five after the set's first 21 points. William Woods essentially put the match out of the Hornet's reach thanks to Baily Peterson, who served up eight consecutive points to give her team a 21-8 lead. HSSU concluded the night with an attack error that gave William Woods the 25-11 set victory.
It will be a quick turnaround for the Owls, as they will host AMC foe and No. 25-ranked Missouri Baptist University on Friday night. It will be 'Bright Out Night' at Anderson Arena, as the first 200 fans will receive a free t-shirt courtesy of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local Union 562. First serve for the match is set for 7 p.m.
Check back with wwuowls.com for a full preview and recap of this and every match during the 2013 season.
