KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State volleyball closed out the regular season with a 3-1 loss (25-21, 22-25, 23-25, 20-25) to Middle Tennessee Saturday afternoon at VyStar Arena. The Owls (13-15, 7-9 CUSA) celebrated Senior Day before the match, honoring Olivia Burrage, Maggie Byrd and Kourtney Brown ahead of their final home appearance.
Kennesaw State will enter next week's Conference USA Volleyball Championship as the No. 7 seed, facing second-seeded Missouri State in the quarterfinals on Friday, Nov. 20, at 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. CT) in Bowling Green, Ky. The eight-team tournament will be hosted by Western Kentucky, with all matches broadcast on ESPN+.
STAT OF THE GAME
Middle Tennessee hit .310 for the match, compared to .242 for Kennesaw State. After hitting just .103 in the opening set, the Blue Raiders hit .343, .341 and .405 over the final three frames to rally for the victory.
THE RUNDOWN
Set One (KSU 25, Middle Tennessee 21)
Kennesaw State jumped out to a 7-2 lead before Middle Tennessee rallied with an 8-1 stretch to take a 10-8 advantage. The teams traded points through the middle of the set, with the Owls moving back ahead 15-13 behind consecutive blocks. KSU extended its lead to 20-17, highlighted by kills from Byrd and a service ace from Gracie Pynes. After the Blue Raiders pulled within 22-21, Haley Patterson delivered three consecutive kills to close out the 25-21 victory.
Set Two (Middle Tennessee 25, KSU 22)
Middle Tennessee took an early 8-5 lead, but Kennesaw State responded with a 6-2 run to move ahead 11-10, highlighted by two kills from Burrage and one from Ashlyn Anderson. The Blue Raiders answered with a 7-2 stretch to regain control at 17-13. KSU fought back to tie the score at 18-18 on a service ace from Byrd but was unable to pull ahead. The Owls closed within 23-22 before Middle Tennessee scored the final two points to take the set, 25-22.
Set Three (Middle Tennessee 25, KSU 23)
The Owls opened with a 5-1 advantage and maintained a narrow lead through much of the first half of the set. Middle Tennessee rallied to take a 15-14 lead before KSU answered with a 4-0 run, capped by an Anna Ofenheusle service ace and a Brown kill, to move ahead 18-15. The Blue Raiders responded with an 8-1 stretch to take a 23-19 lead. Kennesaw State fought back with three consecutive points to even the score at 23-23, including two Burrage kills and a block from Burrage and Patterson. Middle Tennessee collected the final two points to escape with the 25-23 victory.
Set Four (Middle Tennessee 25, KSU 20)
Middle Tennessee established an early 9-5 advantage and maintained its lead throughout the final set. The Blue Raiders extended their margin to 15-12 before KSU pulled within two at 17-15. Middle Tennessee responded with consecutive points to rebuild its advantage and eventually moved ahead 24-20. A final attack error ended the match, giving the Blue Raiders the 25-20 victory.
QUOTES
Kennesaw State Head Coach Keith Schunzel
"First of all, I'm so proud of our three seniors who have all given so much and grown immensely since they walked in the door here four and five years ago.
"I thought our women came ready to play today and frankly played a pretty nice match. Unfortunately we weren't able to pull out set 2, to give us that 2-0 lead, which then gave MTSU some confidence and momentum. After that moment, Henry started really popping off on us, and we just couldn't figure out how to slow her down with our block or our dig and she completely took over sets 3 and 4.
"I thought our defensive presence and intensity let us down in the back half of that match. We had some definite chances at key times to turn defense into offense, but we weren't able to come up with some easy digs and convert offensively, which is where momentum so often comes from.
"All in all, we've won 4 of our last 6 and are playing some nice volleyball at the end. This thing is truly wide open this year and will be ready to go when we get to Bowling Green next week."
NOTES
- Patterson led the Owls with a match-high 18 kills on .282 hitting (18-7-39) while adding three blocks.
- Burrage finished with 16 kills on .448 hitting (16-3-29) and five blocks in her final home match, increasing her school-record career total to 453 blocks.
- Byrd recorded eight kills on .429 hitting (8-2-14), one service ace and one block in her final appearance at VyStar Arena.
- Brown handed out 45 assists to go along with seven digs in her final home match.
- Alexis Sowers paced KSU defensively with 15 digs, while Pynes added 12 digs and one service ace.
- Anderson finished with seven kills and three blocks, including two solo blocks.
- Hunter Cook contributed five kills in two sets of action.
- The Owls held a 62-59 advantage in kills and an 8-6 edge in team blocks.
- Kennesaw State finished the regular season with a 13-15 overall record and 7-9 mark in Conference USA play.
THE CHAMPIONS FUND
The Champions Fund is a newly created, 100% tax-deductible philanthropic opportunity to contribute strategic revenue to Kennesaw State Athletics, with the goal of strengthening our ability to recruit and retain top-tier talent in this new era of collegiate athletics. Contributions to the Champions Fund will help aid in funding student-athlete recruitment and retention, as well as helping the Owls provide competitive excellence through investments in coaching, travel and facilities. The fund will also give an elevated student-athlete experience, including enhanced academic, nutrition, wellness and leadership programs. Donate to the Champions Fund here.
