Follow KSU Volleyball - Twitter | Instagram
KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State Volleyball extended its win streak to two on its home court as the Owls moved to 9-0 all-time against North Alabama with a 3-1 victory (25-21, 25-27, 25-15, 25-20) on Friday night in Atlantic Sun Conference action from the Convocation Center.
OWL OF THE GAME: Making her third career start, freshman Kourtney Brown posted 44 assists and added four kills on four attempts while also adding a pair of aces.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Owls held a commanding 59-35 edge on kills and held UNA to a .101 hitting percentage (35K-21E-138TA).
THE RUNDOWN – KSU opened up a 6-2 lead and never trailed in the first set, though UNA rallied to tie the score at 16-16. With KSU up 23-21, the Owls scored two straight, the last on a kill by Olivia Burrage for a 1-0 edge. Set two saw the Lions lead the entire game, and they were up 22-18 when KSU reeled off a 7-1 run for set point at 24-23. UNA answered back and would take a 2-point set win to tie the match at 1-1. Set three was close with the Owls up 9-7 when they went on an 8-1 run for a commanding 17-9 advantage on the way to grabbing a 2-1 edge. The fourth set had the visitors jump out with a 4-1 advantage. A KSU timeout was followed by a 6-0 spurt for the home team, and the Owls never trailed again while UNA came no closer than three points in the final set.
POSTGAME QUOTES
KSU HEAD COACH KEITH SCHUNZEL
"We've been through a little bit the last few weeks. I think we're slowly but surely getting a little tougher, I think we're slowly but surely getting a little tougher and figuring out we're still a really good ball team despite some of the challenges we've faced. I challenged the team several times tonight, and we responded really well especially at the start of the fourth. I'm proud, we played hard tonight and pretty well at times."
NOTES
-Manu Johnsen notched her second-straight 20+ kill performance with 20 kills while also adding 15 digs for a double-double. Her five service aces were also a career-high.
-Emma Schurfranz and Maggie Butkovich both notched 10 kills each.
-Shelby Dennis posted a team-high 20 digs, and Burrage led the Owls with six total blocks.
-KSU finished with a season-high tying 11 aces.
NEXT TIME OUT: KSU concludes its three-game homestand on Sunday, Oct. 13 with a 1 p.m. contest against Central Arkansas.
