SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Senior hitter Makayla Lindburg and junior outside hitter Amanda Miller combined for 28 of the Mountaineers' 49 kills, and the sixth-ranked EOU volleyball team opened pool play of the NAIA National Championships with a three-set (28-26, 25-17, 25-20) win over Coastal Georgia on Tuesday afternoon.
EOU hit .336 (49 kills, 13 errors, 107 attempts) on the day and posted 10 team blocks.
Lindburg added 11 digs to go along with a match-high 15 kills to notch her third consecutive double-double, while senior setter Rachelle Chamberlain dished out a match-high 43 assists. Miller compiled 13 kills, senior middle hitter Kasaundra Tuma recorded eight kills and six block assists, and sophomore libero Holli Mullins collected a team-high 15 digs.
No doubt the tightest frame of the match, set one featured 12 ties and five lead changes. After falling down 3-0, EOU responded with 16 of the next 26 to go up by three (16-13) following a kill by Lindburg. Miller put one down to make it a 20-17 contest, but the Mariners responded with a 9-5 run to reach set point (26-25). Lindburg and Miller fired back with kills, and then Tuma teamed up with junior right-side hitter Isabelle Statkus for the block assist to seal the first stanza, 28-26.
The second set was tight early on before the Mountaineers assembled an 11-3 run to snag an eight-point (18-10) advantage. Points by Miller and freshman outside hitter Megan Bunn stretched the gap to nine (23-14), and Coastal Georgia got to within seven (24-17) before junior middle hitter Madisen Garlie hammered one down to make it a 2-0 match.
Trailing 7-5 in the third frame, junior middle hitter Emily Nay swatted down a kill to launch a 10-5 run to put EOU up three (15-12). The Mariners (29-9) ultimately pulled to within one (18-17), but Tuma and Lindburg batted down kills to spark a 7-3 Mountaineer run to close the match and cash in the victory.
BY THE NUMBERS
36 – Kills between Lindburg, Miller, Tuma.
4-3 – EOU's all-time record in pool play of the NAIA National Championships.
.336 – The Mountaineers' hitting percentage, compared to a .114 clip by the Mariners.
23 – Number of sweeps for EOU this season.
UP NEXT
EOU (29-2) returns to the hardwood tomorrow against No. 24 Montana Tech at 1 p.m. CT.
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