LINCOLN, Ill. – The Harris-Stowe women's volleyball team kicked off their season this evening when they traveled to Lincoln, Illinois, to take on Lincoln Christian (Ill.) University. The Hornets fell to the Red Lions in four sets (15-25, 22-25, 25-21, 25-10) to fall to 0-1 on the season. With the win, Lincoln Christian improves to 1-0 on the season.
The Hornets came out in the first set and had a tough time getting anything going as they found themselves trailing 7-1 early. They fought back and were able to cut the score to 12-7, but a 5-0 run from the Red Lions put them up 17-7 midway through the set. The Hornets were able to get the lead back down to six late in the game but that was as close as they would get as the Red Lions closed the set on a 4-0 run to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Harris-Stowe came out in the second set and matched the Red Lions point-for-point to start the game. With the score tied at six, the Red Lions used a 4-1 run to take a 10-7 lead in the set. The Hornets battled back as the game progressed and were able to tie the score at 15 and then used a 5-1 run to take a 20-16 lead late in the game. However, the Red Lions came storming back and went on a 9-2 run to end the set and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
In the third game of the night, the Hornets found themselves down early as the Red Lions jumped out to a 13-6 lead in the set. The Red Lions continued to play well as the set progressed and held an 18-12 lead in the game. Despite being down, the Hornets came swarming back and were able to use a 6-0 run to tie the score at 18. The teams went back and forth over the next few points, but with the score tied at 21 the Hornets were able to pick up the final four points of the game to cut the Red Lions lead to 2-1 in the match.
The Hornets struggled to start the fourth set as the Red Lions came out of the gate swinging and jumped out to an early 12-3 lead. Harris-Stowe did their best to get back into the game but were not able to recover from the early run as the Lions closed them out down the stretch to solidify the match.
Harris-Stowe finished the game with 33 kills, 31 assists, 45 digs, and three service aces while recording an attacking percentage of .048. They were led by Mallorie Wooten (FR/East St. Louis, Ill.) who finished with a team high 17 assists. In addition to Wooten, Valorie Walker (JR/Houston, Texas) added 12 assists, Junoria Worthy (JR/Peoria, Ill.) had a team high 17 digs, and Kyanae Toombs (JR/Decatur, Ill.) finished with a team high seven kills to round out the top performers for the Hornets.
The Hornets will continue their road trip tomorrow as they open conference play against Williams Baptist (Ark.) University in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas. The match is set to start at 6 p.m. Spectators will not be allowed at the game but live video and stats will be provided.
