By: by KSU Sports Information
Box ScoreJACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Alyssa Lang's 19 kills and 12 digs lifted Kennesaw State to a, 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 25-19, 25-18), win over Jacksonville in Atlantic Sun Conference volleyball action at Swisher Gym.
"Alyssa comes to play and comes to battle every night," said KSU head coach Karen Weatherington. "She makes the intelligent play on the court and finds a way to keep us in the match. Teams try to shut her down, but she has so many weapons in her arsenal that she finds ways to adjust and score points."
The Owls (7-12, 2-2) had 74 digs on the afternoon, compared to just 59 for the Dolphins. Camille Pedraza had 17, with Rachael Albright close behind with 14. "Camille and Rachael both had solid efforts today. Camille has really rebounded after overcoming some preseason injuries," said Coach Weatherington. "Rachael had some added motivation playing in her home state this weekend, and she really has done a great job in the defensive specialist off the bench."
While the Owls dropped set one, KSU turned a 12-10 deficit into a 17-12 lead with a 7-0 run. A kill by Sara Metroka sparked the run, with kills by Holly Knight and Emily Bean quickly following. On KSU's second set point try, Knight put away the Dolphins with her seventh kill of the match to that point, sending the match into intermission even at one set apiece.
The momentum from set two carried over into set three. An 18-17 lead quickly turned into a five-point advantage thanks to a 4-0 run for the Owls. A kill by Justine Young was followed by a pair of Emily Bean kills. After a lengthy rally, Knight and Bean teamed for a block to give the Owls the five-point edge. The Dolphins (9-10, 2-2) would pull within three, 22-19, but the Owls scored the final three points. Two kills by Lang were bookends to an attack error by the Dolphins, as KSU took the third set.
The visitors would take a 10-6 lead in the fourth set and never look back. The lead swelled to six, 18-12, after a Lang kill, and while the Dolphins would get within three, 21-18, a 4-0 run would close the match in style for the Owls. Metroka's sixth and final kill of the match came just before Young's 14th and final kill. Two points away from defeat, the Dolphins would hand the win to the Owls as a pair of attack errors gave KSU the win.
Lang recorded her team-leading seventh double-double of the season. Metroka's 46 assists gave her an average of 11.38 over the weekend trip to the city of Jacksonville. Knight fell a kill and a dig short of a double-double with nine kills and nine digs.
Kathryn Kane led the Dolphins in kills with 11 and also converted the double-double with 13 digs. Kendall Courtney had 39 assists and 13 digs for a double-double of her own.
The Owls will be back in action Friday at the KSU Convocation Center as they take on Stetson in A-Sun play. First serve is set for 7 p.m.
