Sept. 4, 2011

Box Score

CORVALLIS, Ore. - The LMU volleyball team (3-1) hit a solid .422 over the course of three sets en route to sweeping Seattle (1-5) on Sunday by scores of 25-11, 25-17, 25-19 to open play at the Active Ankle Challenge being hosted by Oregon State.

LMU, which hit better than .370 in each of the three sets, including a high-water mark of .469 in the second set, was led by Jasmine Rankins and Alyse Hensley with 12 kills apiece. Rankins posted a double-double in the victory, teaming the 12 kills with 11 digs while hitting .435. Hensley was a touch more efficient at .476, teaming her 12 kills with a block solo. Emily Cheek was extremely effective against the Redhawks, hitting .643 with 10 kills on 14 swings. Freshman Litara Keil continued her hot start to her first year at LMU, connecting at a .375 clip for seven kills with a match-best five aces. Olivia Bailey set the Lion offense to the high hitting percentage, dishing-out a match-high 35 assists to go along with 11 digs for her first double-double of the year.

Sarah Jaeckel paced the Seattle offense with 10 kills on 31 attacks for a .097 hitting percentage. Seattle hit just .129 as a team, and did not break .200 in any of the three sets. Megan Augustavo had 20 assists and eight digs to narrowly-miss a double-double.

The Lions came out swinging in the first set, hitting .429 while holding Seattle to a match-low .036 mark. Hensley paced the team with six kills on 10 swings without an error, while Rankins and Cheek each added four kills. Outside of setting the offense to the high percentage, Bailey also did work on the defensive side of the ball, notching five of her 11 digs in the opening set. After playing even to eight points, LMU went on an 8-0 run to take a commanding 16-8 lead, capped by a Cheek kill. The Lions cruised from there, earning the 25-11 set victory on a Rankins service ace and Cheek's fourth kill of the period.

LMU's best hitting percentage came in the second as the team hit .469 while making just three errors on 32 attacks. Cheek, who did not appear in the third set, finished strong in the second by contributing six kills on eight swings without an error. Rankins added four more kills in the set, while she also collected six digs to lead the team in that category. Although Jaeckel managed five kills in the set for the Redhawks, Seattle hit just .147 in the 25-17 loss. For the second straight set, the two teams played even to eight, but once again LMU managed to distance itself a bit at 17-13. The four-point lead continued to 20-16, but LMU won the next three points to take a 23-16 advantage on a Cheek kill. After an attack error handed LMU set-point at 24-17, Cheek connected for the final time in the match to give LMU the two-set advantage in the match score.

Keil had her best set of the match in the third and final period, collecting three kills on four attacks with four service aces. Rankins posted four kills for the third straight set, while Hensley hit a cool .750 with three kills on four attacks. Thanks to stellar serving from Keil, LMU had little trouble jumping out to a lead in the final period. The Long Beach, Calif. native began serving at 7-7 and led the Lions on a 7-0 run to 14-7, highlighted by all four of her aces. LMU advanced the lead to 21-12, but Seattle refused to surrender, scratching to within four at 22-18 down the stretch. Fortunately for the Lions, LMU won the next two points to earn match-point at 24-18 before Ashley Maxfeldt collected her only kill to hand LMU the win.

The Lions continue play at the Active Ankle Challenge tonight when they battle host Oregon State at 7:30 p.m.