FULTON, Mo. - William Woods University (23-11, 7-3 American Midwest Conference) moved up a place to fourth in the AMC after sweeping Cottey College (9-18, 2-7) 25-10, 25-21, 25-12 on Senior Night Friday at Anderson Arena.

The Owls were efficient and effective in their attack, while the Comets were the opposite: WWU recorded 41 kills and a .384 hitting percentage, while Cottey had 16 kills and a .029 hitting percentage. Additionally, The Woods notched eight aces, two blocks, 39 assists and 31 digs, and the Comets tallied two aces, three blocks, 15 assists and 14 digs.

On her Senior Night, the Owls' Andressa M. Borges registered a co-match-high 11 kills with a .688 hitting percentage. Outside of Borges, WWU's standouts were Vitoria Campus Mello with a match-high 14 points (11 kills, two aces and one block), Audra Gray with a match-high 19 assists and Erin Treis with 17 assists.  

William Woods got off to a strong start in set one, putting down twice as many kills (8-4) as Cottey with a .357 hitting percentage, compared to the Comets -.227. Tied at 2, the Owls went on a 9-0 run to truly pull through in the set; Cottey made eight attack errors during that stretch, and Kennedy Lane served an ace for WWU. The Owls went ahead by double digits for the first time at 15-5 on the final points of their 5-0 run, with two assists by Erin Treis and a kill each from Federica Borsero, Mya Clapp and Borges. The Comets' ninth and final error handed William Woods the first set.

Unlike the first, the second set was tighter, and it wasn't for the Owls' lack of kills - 17 to Cottey's five - but their hitting percentage of .226, which was still better than the Comets' .143. The Comets' led by as much as four points twice - the last instance at 8-4 - before WWU went on an extended 9-0 run to go up 13-8; Campos Mello and Gray led the Owls' attack in that scoring surge, with two kills and two assists, respectively. After that, Cottey took as large as a three-point advantage, but WWU answered with a 5-0 run that started with it tied at 16 and ended with the Owls on top 20-16. 

Although it won by two fewer points than in the first set, William Woods put together its most productive offensive set in the third and final, recording 16 kills with a .571 hitting percentage; the Comets had seven kills and a .154 hitting percentage. With it 2-all, the Owls started a 4-0 run to take their set-, match-deciding lead. Beginning that stretch, Campos Mello's kill provided by Gray gave WWU the advantage it held for good, and she followed that up with an ace before Cottey had back-to-back bad sets. The Comets cut their deficit to one (6-5), but the Owls denied them from even tying it, scoring five points with no reply to put the hosts up 11-5; Gray notched three assists and Borges two kills in the run. Eleven points later, William Woods stayed on top by double digits for the remainder of the match thanks to who else but Borges and Gray, with the senior putting down a kill from the junior's assist; they flipped roles for match-set point.

Before earning their 14th sweep this season, the Owls held their Senior Night ceremony for their seven seniors: Lauren Adams, Borsero, Kennedy Flanner, Sonye Garcia, Rhakala Blackmon, Borges and Reanna Dodge.

 "It's always a great night for your seniors to take home a win, but it makes it an even greater night when you can run an entire lineup with the talent you have in your senior class," William Woods volleyball coach Kandace Cook said. "I couldn't be more proud of the seniors that have helped build this program along with those that transferred in to make this team their home. Our seniors have truly impacted this team and the culture that we will continue to build. It's been a great night to be an Owl!" 

Friday's contest was the Owls' final regular season home game. Before the postseason, William Woods faces a pair of AMC opponents in Arkansas, first playing Williams Baptist University (8-17, 3-5 AMC) at 6 p.m. Friday at Southerland-Mabee Center in Walnut Ridge. Read Full Article