FULTON, Mo.—The William Woods University volleyball team nearly pulled a huge upset on Saturday afternoon, but despite its efforts, No. 24-ranked Grand View University, was able to storm back and escape Anderson Arena with a 3-2 (25-22, 31-29, 23-25, 19-25, 12-15) victory.

Prior to the game, WWU (22-13; 9-2 AMC) honored its eight seniors, which included, Cassandra Merica, Jennifer Martin, McKenna Hisel, Cierra Merz, Lauren Rodewald, Emily Becker, Rachel Frabotta and Kendra Vernatti.

Things started out very well for the Owls in the first set, as they jumped out to a 12-9 lead, after an attack error by the Vikings (21-12; 8-2 HAAC). The Vikings, however, would even the score back up at 12-all, after a kill by Taylor Wells, who finished with a game-high 21 kills.

The teams' would continue to go point-for-point, but WWU was able to regain some breathing room, after a kill by Merz. The Owls were able to fend off any type of comeback by the Vikings, as an attack error gave the Owls a first set victory, by the score of 25-22.

WWU totaled eight kills and an attack percentage of .207 in the first set, while the Vikings, totaled 15, but committed nine errors.

The second set was a thriller to say the least, as prior to the two squads meeting up at 18-all, the largest lead of the set belonged to WWU, when the score was 6-3.
GVU, was able to take a 22-19 lead, after a set error by the Owls. That advantage was short-lived, as after a kill by Becker to make it a 23-21 game, the Vikings committed three straight attack errors, which gave the Owls a 24-23 lead.

William Woods couldn't finish them off, as Wells added another kill, to put the score back at 24-24. This was the same story for the next five points, with neither team willing to give in, but a huge block by Becker and Merz gave WWU a 30-29 advantage again.

This time around, WWU finished off GVU, as Merz slammed down the kill, off an assist from Engelbrecht, which allowed WWU to win the game 31-29 and take a 2-0 set lead.

The Owls were dominant in the second set, as they totaled a match-high 20 kills, for an attack percentage of .356. GVU, played just as well, having 19 kills of their own.

In the third set, the Vikings needed to grab the early momentum and they did, as Wells tallied another kill, which put the team ahead 12-7. GVU would push its advantage out to 16-10, after a kill from Kelsey Redmond, but WWU would go on an 8-4 run, capped off by a kill from Frabotta, which narrowed the Owls deficit down to 20-18.

The Owls would continue to battle, as another attack error, cut the lead down to 24-23, but GVU went to its star player in Wells, who earned a kill and kept the Vikings hope alive with a 25-23 set win.

Grand View University, totaled 12 kills in the third set and limited themselves to just three errors, while the Owls, had 14 kills, but had seven errors, for an attack percentage of .194.

In the all-important fourth set, WWU grabbed a 14-13 lead, after a kill from Rodewald. The Vikings, however, would score the next two points on a kill from Redmond and a set error, which gave them a 15-14 lead.

They were able to extend its advantage out to 20-17, after a kill from Sydney Nielsen, and never looked back, as the Vikings forced a fifth and final set, after winning game four, 25-19.

Despite having eight errors in the set, the Vikings made up for it with 13 kills, while for WWU, they had five kills and six errors, for an attack percentage of -0.043.

In the fifth set, the Owls took a 7-6 lead, after a kill from Stephanie Davis, who finished with 10 kills in the outing this afternoon. The Vikings, however, took an 8-7 lead, after a service error and an attack error.
 
The Owls trailed 9-8, but a service ace by Vernatti tied the score up at 9-all and an attack error by the Vikings, allowed WWU to take a 10-9 lead, which forced the GVU coaching staff to take a timeout.
 
Out of the timeout, the Vikings responded, going on 3-0 run, giving them a 12-10 advantage. A kill by Becker, who finished with a team-high 18 kills, cut the lead down to 13-12, but GVU was able to collect the final two points and take the set and the match, 15-12.
 
Merz, an Oxnard, California, native, had herself a game, as she finished second on the team with 11 kills. Setter Brittney Engelbrecht, totaled 41 assists, while defensively, junior Shelby Hinshaw led the back line with 17 digs. Vernatti contributed 14, while Becker, filled up the stat sheet, as along with her 18 kills, she totaled eight digs and six blocks.
 
Grand View University, meanwhile, was led by Chrissy Daggett with 43 assists and 16 digs. Courtney Bliss led the way with 20 digs, while Asia Kloewer contributed 11.
 
It won't get any easier for the Owls in its final regular season home match, as they will play its fourth consecutive top-25 team on November 5^th, when they host No. 9-ranked Park University. First-serve will start at 7 p.m.
 
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com next week for a full preview of the teams' regular season finale against the Pirates.

Tweet ##Owls_VB