SPRINGFIELD, Ill.—The William Woods University volleyball team closed out the 2014 regular season in impressive fashion, as the Owls defeated Benedictine University at Springfield in straight sets (25-11, 25-21, 27-25) on Wednesday night.
Not only did the team pick up its eighth conference win on the season, senior libero
Abbie O'Mara collected 16 digs in the outing and in the process, became the program's all-time leader in digs, having 2,216 in her four-year illustrious career.
O'Mara, a St. Peters, Missouri, native, was able to surpass the mark of 2,207 digs, set by Amanda Henley from 2009-2012.
After taking the first set (25-11) with rather ease against the Bulldogs (2-22; 1-10 AMC), the Owls (22-15; 8-4 AMC), had to battle in the second set, but still were able to win 25-21 and take a 2-0 game lead.
The third set was a wild one, as BenU-Springfield held a 23-12 advantage over WWU, however, the Owls pulled an amazing comeback, closing out the set on a 15-2 run and were able to take the set and the match 27-25.
WWU totaled 42 kills in the match and were led by junior
Emily Becker having a team-high 12 kills and an attack percentage of .500, while also earning two service aces.
Stephanie Davis collected eight kills and two blocks, while freshman
Abbi McKnelly added six kills, a team-high three service aces and 11 digs on the defensive side of the net.
Freshman setter
Brittney Engelbrecht, meanwhile, totaled 24 assists and three digs. Defensively, the Owls had 50 digs and eight blocks, as along with Davis,
Lauren Rodewald and
Cierra Merz tied for the team-high with two blocks, while
Abby Ferguson and Engelbrecht had one.
The Owls will return to the court on November 11
th for the American Midwest Conference (AMC) Tournament Quarterfinals, as an opponent and a time is TBA.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com for a full preview on who the Owls will be playing in the first round of the AMC Tournament.
