LA GRANDE, Ore. – Just a few nights after seeing its nearly year-long home winning streak snapped, the No. 2-ranked Eastern Oregon volleyball team delivered exactly the response it wanted, sweeping I-84 rival No. 18 College of Idaho, 25-19, 25-23, 25-16, inside Quinn Coliseum.
The Mountaineers (23-2, 15-2 CCC) were sharp on both sides of the ball, hitting .310 as a team and out-blocking the Yotes 8-4 to take care of business after Saturday's setback.
The night began shakily as C of I (15-9, 9-8 CCC) jumped ahead 5-1 in the opening set, but EOU was quick to respond. Setter
Ava Semprimoznik settled the offense, locating
Keira Vaughn and
Emma Burlingame as the Mounties steadily erased the gap. A mid-set surge gave the Mounties control, and they closed out the frame 25-19.
Eastern hit a blistering .459 with only two errors in set two, while College of Idaho answered with a .412 clip.
Kiauna Mack delivered a pivotal kill to push the score to 23-20, and Vaughn put away the set winner at 25-23.
The third was all Mountaineers, as an 8-1 burst out of the gate keyed by Mack and
Brooke Womack held the Yotes' attack to just .026 in the frame. From there, the ball lived on EOU's terms, with
McKenzie Jonas and
Mylie Mills punctuating rallies and Womack holding it down as the Mounties cruised to a 25-16 finish to complete the sweep.
Vaughn led the attack with 10 kills, while Mack anchored the net with nine kills on .350 hitting and five blocks. Burlingame was efficient with eight kills on a .429 percentage, and Womack paired her seven kills with a team-high 12 digs. Semprimoznik handed out 19 assists and added a kill on her lone attack, while
Kate Stidham contributed 15 more and an ace as Eastern totaled 46 kills on the night.
C of I was led by Mia Hutchinson's 14 kills and 10 digs, while setter Madeline Lee tallied 20 assists and two aces.
The Mountaineers continue their midweek slate tomorrow evening, traveling to Portland to face Warner Pacific University at 6 p.m.
