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LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Kennesaw State Volleyball ends the regular season with a two-game road sweep at New Mexico State, as the Owls claimed a 3-1 (25-23, 20-25, 25-18, 25-17) victory on Friday night at the Pan American Center. The victory gives KSU a 12-4 CUSA mark (18-8 overall), which is currently good for fourth place in the conference. However, a loss by FIU on Saturday on the road at CUSA co-leader UTEP would cause a tie with the Owls. KSU would win the tiebreaker and earn the third seed in next week's conference tournament, thanks to its two-game sweep over FIU earlier this season in Kennesaw.
OWL OF THE GAME: Kiernan Stamey shined on Friday after leading the Owls with 15 kills while hitting .375 (15K-3E-32TA). She also recorded seven digs, three blocks and one ace.
STAT OF THE GAME: KSU hit a strong .305 (67K-21E-151TA) for the night, while the Aggies were limited to just .186 (46K-20E-140TA).
THE RUNDOWN – The Owls were hot in the opening set, coming out hitting .385 and not committing an error until midway through the set. However, they still trailed at 9-7 before reeling off an 8-2 run to go up 15-11 and they never trailed again, holding off the Aggies for the two-point thanks to a kill from
Maggie Byrd. KSU then scored the first six points of the second set, and led 13-9 when the Aggies made a run, scoring the next six points of the contest. The would finish off the set with a five-point win to tie the set at 1-1. Set three saw NMSU led early at 7-4, and the Aggies were up 12-10 when the Owls changed the momentum of not only the set but the entire match with an 8-2 run that put them ahead 18-14. The Aggies did close within 19-18, but KSU scored the final six points to claim the set and a 2-1 lead. KSU then never trailed in set four, and the story was a 9-0 run that put the Owls up 23-13 before they closed out the victory.
POSTGAME QUOTES – KSU HEAD COACH KEITH SCHUNZEL
"Heck of a finish to our regular season. To finish the year 6-2 on the road in this league is nothing to scoff at. I thought we played some really consistent and clean ball for a good bit of that match tonight. We had some nice bounce back matches from (Olivia) Burrage and (Haley) Patterson tonight and I thought as a team we stayed steady and composed in tight moments.
I couldn't be prouder of the regular season our team just put together. We grew a ton and the way that this team stayed connected in the ups and downs was fun to be a part of."
NOTES
-Four Owls finished in double-figures for kills, as joining Stamey was Burrage (14),
Manu Johnsen (12) and Patterson (11).
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Kaeley Walz had a strong overall game, notching 33 assists and 12 digs for a double-double. Johnsen also added 14 digs to claim a double-double as well.
-Burrage led the Owls with eight blocks, while
Leah Freeman's 17 digs paced the squad.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls will find out their exact seeding and opponent in next week's tournament after the end of the regular season on Saturday night. The quarterfinals are set for Friday, Nov. 21 with four games, while the semifinals will be played on Saturday, Nov. 22 and the championship will be held on Sunday, Nov. 23. This year's tournament is being hosted by FIU in Miami.
The Owls Fund
The Owls Fund is the primary fundraising arm of Kennesaw State Athletics with the goal of supporting our student-athletes, coaches and each of our 18 NCAA Division I programs. Through initiatives such as Legacy Lockers, the Dot Martin Scholarship Golf Classic, sport-specific giving opportunities, general donations and season tickets, The Owls Fund connects fans with KSU's programs and student-athletes. Members receive exclusive benefits such as hospitality seating areas and events at Kennesaw State home games, and more. Join The Owls Fund here and discover more opportunities on how you can support Kennesaw State Athletics.
