Southern Indiana (7-8, 5-1 GLVC): 3
at Saint Joseph's (4-12, 0-6 GLVC): 2
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RENSSELAER, Ind.—The University of Southern Indiana volleyball team held off a Saint Joseph's College rally to post a 25-21, 25-20, 16-25, 21-25, 15-12 Great Lakes Valley Conference victory Friday night.
Junior middle blocker
Emily Diedrich and junior setter
Jorae Bradbury combined for a block on a Saint Joseph's attack in the fifth set to seal the victory for the Screaming Eagles, who have won seven of their last eight matches.
After blasting the host Pumas to the tune of 19 kills and a .395 attacking percentage in the second set, the Eagles found themselves reeling following a disappointing offensive performance in the third stanza.
Saint Joseph's (4-12, 0-6 GLVC), which had 17 team blocks, held USI to a negative .050 attacking percentage in the third set as it cut the Eagles lead in half.
USI (7-8, 5-1 GLVC) hit .051 in the fourth set, but the Pumas' best offensive frame of the match—13 kills and a .225 attacking clip—handed the Eagles a four-point loss and sent the contest into a deciding fifth set.
The Eagles, who hit .124 in the match, used 10 kills and a .185 attacking percentage in the fifth frame to end the Pumas comeback bid and avoid the upset bid.
Diedrich had four blocks and a career-high 15 kills to lead the Eagles, while Bradbury finished with 35 assists and 12 digs. Senior right side hitter
Emily Meyer had 12 kills and a career-best 20 digs, while sophomore outside hitter
Lauren DeShaney added 12 kills.
Defensively, the Eagles held the Pumas to a .122 attacking percentage for the match. Junior libero
Kayla Heldman led the Eagles with 24 digs, while freshman defensive specialist
Erin Goldschmidt and freshman middle blocker
Abbey Winter had 13 digs and five blocks, respectively.
Heldman is just 14 digs shy of becoming the ninth player in the program's history to reach 1,000 career digs.
USI returns to action Saturday at 2 p.m. (CDT) when it visits No. 9 University of Indianapolis. The Greyhounds (14-2, 6-0 GLVC) ran their winning streak to 11 on Friday with a four-set win over Wittenberg University and a three-set victory over Kentucky Wesleyan College.
