Story written by Sports Information student worker Jacob Guilianelli FULTON, Mo.- The William Woods University volleyball team defeated Freed Hardeman University in four sets (24-26, 25-11, 25-21, 25-22), after falling in the first set 26-24, the Owls dominated the court with three consecutive set wins for the comeback victory.
The Owls (16-9; 6-0 AMC), continue to prove themselves in the American Midwest Conference, as WWU collected a total of 56 kills and 139 total attacks soaring past the Freed Hardeman Lions.
In the first set, William Woods was the first to score in an intense rally that started with
Brittney Engelbrecht serve floating over the net. Woods took an early lead with impressive defense initiated by a block from senior,
Emily Becker and freshman
Tory Wiley securing a 7-3 lead. After the kill by
Emily Becker, the Owls took the 13-6 lead.
Soon after, FHU called the first time out of the game to strategize, and coming out of the timeout the Lady Lions pushed within two, cutting the Owls advantage to 18-16.
As the game neared the end, with a score all tied up 24-24,
Tory Wiley had an impressive kill but was called out, giving Freed-Hardeman the 25-24 lead. FHU went on to take the first set after another WWU attack error 26-24, for the 1-0 match advantage.
As expected the second set started as a back and forth battle but the Owls gained momentum taking a 6-3 lead with the help of
Emily Becker's finesse shot. With late offensive outbursts the Owls win 25-11, going on an impressive 11-4 run to finish the game.
With the series tied at one a piece, the owls struck first in the third set, carrying over their victorious demeanor from the second set. As the game progressed no team lead the floor and with the neck and neck battle continuing WWU gained the 7-6 lead, assisted by
Cierra Merz's impending kill.
The owls continued their offensive dominance, kill after kill which regained the lead (14-11). Later in the set, William Woods would go on a 4-0 run prompting FHU to call a timeout. The Lady Lions fighting spirit brought them within three, but it wasn't enough to secure the victory with Owls winning 25-21 to take a 2-1 series lead.
The junior
Stephanie Davis opened the fourth set up with a well-placed hit, giving the owls the early lead. The back and forth battle continued, as both sides playing very aggressively.
Freed-Hardeman took their first lead, 8-7, with stellar offense. However, the Owls answered right back with two kills back to back, taking a 9-8 lead. The Lady Lions went on a 4-0 run of their own, to increase their lead by four. But the Owls attacked the Lady Lions with consecutive kills from Becker and Davis to bring them within two points.
The persistence of WWU prevailed late in the game as they tied it up 21-21. The Owls then took a 23-22 lead after outstanding defense from the setter,
Brittney Engelbrecht and would set up
Tory Wiley kill, as the fearless freshman pounded the ball into the ground for the final point of the game and the Owls get the win 25-22 set and match, come from behind win.
Becker, accomplished another double-double, compiling 14 kills and 11 digs. She also served up three aces on the night, while Davis had a team-high 17 kills, proving her to be a strong offensive threat on the court.
Shelby Hinshaw led the team, defensively with 15 digs along with five assists, as Engelbrecht handed out a team high 43 assists and added nine digs on the night.
William Woods will get back to work tomorrow at home, with a match-up against Central Baptist College at 4 pm.
WBC enters the game with a 6-19 overall record and are currently still looking for its first AMC win on the season (0-6). The Mustangs are coming off a thrilling five set win over Philander Smith University.
Gloria Bell leads the team offensively with 96 kills on the year, while Rebecca Lowe has recorded a team-high 254 assists and Lenee Gibson has gathered an impressive 300 digs.
Fans check back on wwuowls.com tomorrow night for a full recap and score from inside Anderson Arena.
