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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Kennesaw State volleyball head coach Keith Schunzel earned his 150th career victory Friday afternoon as his Owl squad claimed a fourth straight victory thanks to a 3-0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-19) sweep of Lipscomb in ASUN action. The match was held on the North Florida campus as part of a divisional crossover weekend, which will see KSU play two more games against the West Division this weekend. The Owls were in control almost the entire match, as they did not trail in the first or second sets, before rallying late in the third set to close out the sweep.
The Owls are alone in third place in the East Division at 6-3, and improved to 12-8 overall with the victory, which snapped a three-game losing streak in the series with the Bison. Lipscombe meanwhile dropped to 9-10, and 6-3 in the ASUN.
OWL OF THE GAME: Senior Lauren Chastang turned in her best game in ASUN play this season with a season-high .500 hitting performance off 12 kills (12K-1E-22TA). She also added three digs, three blocks and an ace in the victory.
STAT OF THE GAME: For the first time this season, the Owls have hit over .300 as a team in back-to-back games, after finishing Friday at .349 (39K-10E-83TA). Lipscomb meanwhile finished with a .134 (27K-16E-82TA).
SET ONE: KSU jumped out to a 6-1 lead and would hold as high as an eight-point edge (20-12) before claiming the eight-point win. The Owls finished the set with a 3-0 run, including an ace from McKinley Ferguson.
SET TWO: The set was tied three times, at 2-2, 4-4 and 5-5, until a 6-0 spurt put the Owls ahead 11-5. Emma Schurfranz posted two of her 11 kills on the afternoon during that run. Lipscomb kept the score close, closing within two several times but the Bison could never grab the lead, while Chastang finished off the final point with a kill for a 25-22 win.
SET THREE: An early 5-0 run gave the Bison a 6-2 edge. KSU came back to tie the match at 7-7, and the lead would switch hands several times in the set. The Bison's least lead came at 15-14 following a service error by KSU. Six unanswered points by the Owls put them in control, KSU then scored five of the final six points of the set to claim the match.
QUOTEABLE: "The confidence and consistency our team is playing with right now is fantastic. There's always plays you want back and things to improve on, but this was another excellent start to finish performance by our women against a quality opponent. We're only one game away from humility though, so we'll need to rest tonight and keep our foot on the gas pedal tomorrow against Bellarmine. "– KSU head coach Keith Schunzel
NOTES:
- KSU claimed its first win over Lipscomb since Oct. 4, 2019, breaking a three-game losing streak to the Bison.
- This marked the first-ever 3-0 sweep for KSU over Lipscomb in the 32-game series.
- The Owls are riding a six-set win streak, as they won the final three in Sunday's 3-1 victory over North Florida. That ties for the longest of the season.
- Ferguson paced the Owls on Friday in assists with 28, while Jasmine Brown had a team-high six blocks. Bri Becerra and Shelby Dennis both posted 10 digs each to lead KSU.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls will face Bellarmine on Saturday at 3 pm, before closing out the weekend on Sunday against Eastern Kentucky, also at 3 pm.
