KENOSHA, Wis. – Women's Volleyball competed against the Roosevelt University Lakers and the Winona State University Warriors on the final day of the Hampton Inn Invitational. McKendree added their first win to the season in their first match against Roosevelt, falling in the second match to the Warriors.
In McKendree's first game of the day versus the Lakers, the Bearcats took the match 3-1, with the scores of 22-25, 25-20, 25-18, 25-19. After falling short in the first set, McKendree fought off the Lakers, winning the next three sets.
The Bearcats were led offensively by the outside duo, senior Destiny Gray and freshman Maddy Clarke. Gray recorded 15 kills and Clarke added in 12 to help give McKendree an offensive edge over the Lakers. Freshmen setter Peyton Uptgraft orchestrated the Bearcats offense dishing out 21 assists, followed by redshirt freshman setter Lexi Hoffman who added in 18. Senior libero Ashlyn Berczynski tallied up 17 digs, leading the Bearcats in the back court. Gray added in 11 digs, giving herself a double double (15 kills and 11 digs). As a team, McKendree tallied 60 digs on the match. Adding onto the Bearcats defensive presence was freshman middle blocker Megan Bishton, freshman opposite Avery Wuebbels, and sophomore middle blocker Avery Guisinger, who recorded 5, 4, and 3 blocks respectively. The Bearcats were also a threat from the service line, recording 9 aces as a team.
In McKendree's match up with the Warriors, the Bearcats struggled to find an offensive answer. Gray led the team with 7 kills and Wuebbels tagged on 5 kills to try and spark some life into the Bearcats. Despite Berczynski's impressive 25 digs on the match, McKendree was lacking production offensively. The defensive efforts for both teams alike were evenly matched, with the Warriors recording 52 digs, but the Bearcats only picked up 45. Winona State recorded a total of 40 kills on the match, hitting at a .211%. McKendree only put the ball away 27 time while maintaining a hitting percentage of .108%. The Bearcats offense and defense were not on the same wavelength this match. They dropped this match 0-3 with the scores of 21-25, 16-25, 17-25.
Next up for McKendree will be the Comfort Inn Invitational September 19th-September 20th. The Bearcats will face Washburn University, Ouachita Baptist University, and the University of Central Missouri.
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