ROLLA, Mo.—The University of Southern Indiana volleyball team bounced back from a tough loss to No. 6 Grand Valley State University Friday morning to defeat Missouri Western State University in four sets Friday afternoon.

USI (1-1) defeated the Griffons 25-23 and 25-21 to take a 2-0 advantage in the match. After dropping the third set, 25-23, the Screaming Eagles used a 10-0 run in the fourth frame and held off a late rally to clinch the match with a 25-22 victory.

Senior middle blocker Meg Buschman (Reynolds, Indiana) led the Eagles with 13 kills, while sophomore outside hitter Brittani Oliver (Indianapolis, Indiana) and junior outside hitter Courtney Bealor (LaPorte, Indiana) chipped in 11 and 10 kills, respectively.

Junior setter Melanie Pund (Ferdinand, Indiana) led the Eagles' offense to a .170 attacking percentage by racking up six kills and a match-high 40 assists. She also added 14 digs and four blocks to aid USI's defense, which held Missouri Western State (1-1) to a .104 attacking clip.

Sophomore libero Janae Curnutt (Arcadia, Indiana) led all players with 25 digs, while Oliver and Bealor each chipped in 15 digs. Buschman led USI's front row with seven blocks.

Earlier in the day, the Eagles battled back from a one-set deficit to tie the match at a game each with a 26-24 victory over Grand Valley State in the second frame. The Lakers (1-0), who defeated the Eagles 25-11 in the opening frame, answered the Eagles' challenge by reeling off 15 straight points to open the third set, eventually claiming a 25-14 win to regain the one-game advantage.

USI was solid in the fourth set, racking up a .289 attacking clip, but the Lakers prevailed with a 25-19 win to end the match in four games.

Junior right-side hitter Kathi Hindman (Carmel, Indiana) led USI with eight kills, while Curnutt and Pund added 14 and 11 digs, respectively.

USI finishes the "Middle of Everywhere" Classic Saturday when it takes on No. 17 Pittsburg State University at noon and Southwestern Oklahoma State University at 4 p.m.