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KENNESAW, Ga. – The Kennesaw State volleyball team grinded out a four-set victory over North Alabama Friday night, 25-18, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20, to win their 12th straight match.
 
With the win, the Owls (18-4, 9-0) remain undefeated in the ASUN while matching a program record with 12 consecutive wins.
 
How it Happened: KSU jumped out to an early 5-1 lead to open the match, but UNA (2-16, 0-9) responded with a 5-1 run of its own to tie the match, 6-6. The two teams kept it close until a 4-0 run, featuring two kills and a block from Quin Sutphin, gave KSU a 20-14 lead.
 
The Lions pulled it to within three, 21-18, but KSU closed the set out on a 4-0 run to win the opening frame.
 
UNA flipped the script to open the second set, taking a 6-1 lead. The Owls eventually pulled in front, 12-8, thanks to a 9-1 run. KSU kept the Lions at arm's length the rest of the set with Sydni Shelton recording the final kill to give the Owls a 25-20 set win and a 2-0 lead.
 
North Alabama adjusted during the intermission, eventually pulling away to take a 12-7 lead in the third set following a 5-1 run. The Owls managed to get within one, 14-13, after back-to-back kills from Madeline Johnson, but UNA's Christina Ellwanger answered with two kills of her own to give the Lions a three-point advantage.
 
UNA maintained a slim lead throughout the set before recording six of the final eight points to win the set 25-19.
 
Engelbrecht gave the Owls a boost in the fourth set, recording two aces to help KSU take a 5-0 lead. UNA pulled to within one, but the Owls answered with a 7-1 run to take a 12-5 lead.
 
KSU built its lead to as high as nine points, 19-10, following another block from Sutphin. UNA chipped away at the Owls lead to get back within four, 24-20, but a Lion error clinched the match victory for KSU.
 
Notes: Lauren Chastang recorded her fourth double-double in the last five matches, 11th of the season, with 12 kills and 12 digs … Quin Sutphin nearly recorded her second straight double-double, finishing with a team-high 14 kills and seven blocks … Sutphin's 97 total blocks this season moves her into second on the all-time single-season list … Lexi Broadwater tied her career high for the third time this season, recording five aces … Broadwater now ranks second all-time in a single-season with 34 aces on the year … Sydni Shelton recorded a career-high 12 digs, her first career match with double-digit digs, to go along with eight kills … Karlee Groover was two digs shy of her career-high, finishing with 22 digs.
 
Quotes: Head Coach Keith Schunzel
On tonight's match…
"We didn't play great tonight, but I want to first give credit to North Alabama who played fantastic. That's a message we've been sending all week, and as the season goes on teams get better, teams make adjustments, teams improve and we better be doing the same. I don't think we showed up with our best competitive hat on tonight, but we did some really good things. it's not like we played a horrific game, we had some nice performances starting with Quin Sutphin, and Dani Ballou had a nice game on the outside. We did some good things, but we need to be better."
 
On Quin Sutphin's recent play…
"Quin is learning how to be an everyday player to the point where we don't want her to have 20 kills one match and two the next. We want her to have eight, 10, 12 kills every night and then get four or five blocks, and tonight she exceeded both of those. She's a heck of a player, she's getting more and more dynamic, more and more confident, she's learning the game at a higher level and I'm really proud of what she did tonight."
 
On Lexi Broadwater's role…
"She is kind of been our unsung hero this year. She has a little quieter way about her on the court. She's just cool and confident and really calm all the time. ... She's doing a great job and I'm proud of what she's doing from a leadership stand point, from controlling the court and running the show on our side. Every week, every game she gets better and better and she's just a smooth natural setter."   
 
Up next: The Owls close out the weekend hosting NJIT Sunday at 2 p.m.