OSKALOOSA, Iowa – The William Woods University volleyball team split on day one of the Labor Day Tournament hosted by William Penn University. The Owls lost 3-1 to William Penn to open the tournament. In their second match of the day, they came back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Graceland University, 3-2. The Owls improve to 5-3 on the season.
 
The Owls finish out the tournament with a 9 a.m. game versus Waldorf and a 2 p.m. game versus Mount Marty on Sunday, September 5.
 
 
William Penn def. William Woods, 3-1
The Owls fell 30-32, 10-25, 27-26, 18-25.
 
By The Numbers
26 – Tori Rosemann led the Owls with 26 digs.
18 – Tess Schannuth assisted in 18 kills. 
9 – Hannah Kuehl led the Owls with nine kills.
6 – Hannah Kuehl and Kassidy Phillips led the floor with six blocks each. 
 
Game Highlights
The two teams battled back-and-forth throughout the entire first set. A service error by the Owls brought WPU to set point, but a block from Kassidy Phillips evened the score at 24-24. Two WPU errors put the Owls up 27-26, but WPU put down a kill to even the score once more. WPU got to set point twice more, but a kill from Hannah Kuehl and a kill from Phillips evened the score both times. WPU closed out the set with a kill followed by a block to end the set with a 32-30 score.
 
WPU jumped out to an 8-0 lead in set two, and the Owls were unable to recover, falling 25-10.
 
An Owls' 9-0 run in the middle of set three gave them a two-point lead after WPU started with a 9-3 lead. WPU took back the lead, but WWU evened up the score multiple times. A 3-0 Owls run thanks to two WPU errors and a block from Kuehl put the Owls up 23-22. WPU got to set point, 24-23, but a service error evened the score, and a kill from Phillips put the Owls up 25-23. Another service error again put the Owls to set point, and an ace from Kuehl sealed the set win, 27-25.
 
The Owls jumped out to a 9-5 lead in set four, but a 12-2 run by WPU gave them a seven-point lead, 19-12. The Owls closed the gap to five points after WPU took up a eight-point lead, but they were unable to recover and lost 25-18. 
 
 
William Woods def. Graceland, 3-2
The Owls won 20-25, 19-25, 25-20, 25-17, 15-8.
 
By The Numbers
17 – Alli Gueck assisted in 17 Owls' kills.
15 – Tori Rosemann led the floor with 15 digs.
14 – Hannah Kuehl put down a floor-high 14 kills.
3 – Lauren Hiestand served up three aces.
 
Game Highlights
Set one's lead went back-and-forth between the two teams, but Graceland struck a 4-0 run to end the set with a 25-20 win.
 
Graceland held a steady lead in set two, and despite the Owls coming within one point following a 3-0 run, they were unable to even the score. Graceland put together a 5-1 run to end the set with a 25-19 win.
 
Four Graceland errors gave the Owls an early 5-2 lead in set three. The Owls stayed one step ahead although Graceland kept the set within one point for the majority of it. The Owls took a three-point lead following three Graceland errors and a kill from Hannah Kuehl, 21-18. Two more Graceland errors put the Owls up 23,19, and kills from Alli Gueck and Reanna Dodge sealed the 25-20 win for the Owls.
 
Kills from Kassidy Phillips and Lanie Lowry followed by two aces from Gueck gave the Owls a 10-6 lead in set four. Two aces from Hiestand and kills from Emily Greif and Riley Alton put the Owls up 16-9, but Graceland cut the game to two points following a 5-0 run. The Owls responded with a 7-1 run to close out the game with a 25-17 win, sending the match to the decision set.
 
After a close start to set five, the Owls powered together a 4-0 run to double Graceland's score, 12-6. An ace from Hiestand and two Graceland service errors ended the set with a 15-8 win for the Owls.