ERIE, PA – Despite battling back to win the third set by hitting .257 in the frame, the Siena Volleyball team was unable to slow down the Morehead State offense to the tune of a 3-1 (19-25, 26-28, 25-19, 14-25) defeat to conclude play in the Mercyhurst Invitational on Saturday on Owen McCormick Court.
Morehead St. finished with a 58-43 advantage in kills.
Siena (2-4) finished 1-2 on the weekend for a second consecutive week.
Sophomore right side
Mary Claire Deacy led the Saints with 13 kills, hitting .313 and adding two solo blocks. Redshirt senior libero
Brooke Malek collected 15 digs and added three assists and an ace while junior setter
Abby Edwards finished with 23 assists, six digs and two kills. Redshirt sophomore outside hitter
Brianna Miller recorded nine kills, nine digs, three assists and an ace.
Siena was meeting Morehead State (4-2) for the first time.Â
Set-by-Set
Siena built a 12-8 lead in the opening set, but Morehead St. answered with nine straight points to move in front 17-12 and eventually took the set 25-19. Earlier, Deacy helped Siena start quickly with four kills among its first five points, and Miller,
Gabrielle Wire and
Maggie Seymour contributed as Siena turned a 6-5 deficit into a 10-7 advantage. After Morehead St.'s run, Siena responded with three straight points, including a
Natalia Clifford ace, to cut the margin to 17-15. Deacy added another kill and
Oliwia Majtyka served an ace late, but Morehead St. closed out the first set from there.
Siena erased a 12-8 deficit with seven straight points, starting with a Deacy kill before six consecutive points on Seymour's serve moved Siena ahead 15-12. Earlier, Morehead St. opened the set with five straight points, but Siena worked back behind kills from Edwards, Seymour,
Alison Goldberg, Deacy and Miller. After Morehead St. closed within 15-14, Deacy answered with another kill, and Siena later went up 19-15 on Goldberg kill and a Morehead St. setting error. Deacy put Siena back in front 23-22 late, and Miller followed with kills that gave Siena a 24-23 lead and tied the set at 25-25, but Morehead St. answered through the final extra points to take the set 28-26.
Siena turned a 15-8 deficit into a 25-19 third-set win, using a mid-set response to move in front and finish off the Eagles. Earlier, Siena stayed within reach with kills from Clifford, Miller and Wire before Malek served four straight points, a stretch that included Seymour's block, Deacy's kill and Malek's ace to cut Morehead St.'s lead to 15-13. After Morehead St. went ahead 16-13, Deacy and Clifford put down kills, a Morehead St. ball-handling error tied the set at 16-16, and Miller's kill gave Siena a 17-16 lead. Miller followed with another kill and an ace before a Morehead St. attack error put Siena ahead 20-17, and Goldberg delivered the final two Siena points with kills to close the set.
Siena could not climb out of an early deficit in the fourth set, as Morehead St. opened an 8-2 lead and later stretched the margin to 20-8 during a six-point run. Goldberg put Siena on the board with an early kill, and Wire added two kills from Edwards as the Saints tried to answer Morehead St.'s blocking and serving pressure. Deacy gave Siena consecutive side-out swings in the later stages, recording kills at 20-9 and 21-10 with Edwards assisting both. Siena added late points on a Morehead St. service error, an attack error, Wire's third kill of the set and a Seymour ace, but Morehead St. closed out the set 25-14.
Siena hosts Delaware State on Friday, Sept. 11, at noon at UHY Center in Loudonville to begin the Siena Invitational that includes a round robin format against Le Moyne and Bucknell.Â
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