OWENBORO, KY. – West Virginia State Volleyball split the weekend at the Kentucky Wesleyan Invitational, dropping their first contests of the season on Friday before bouncing back to win two contests on Saturday against Lee and Missouri Southern.

State sits at 7-2 on the young season, and the weekend was highlighted by senior Jenna Dufresne eclipsing the 1,000 career kill mark in Saturday's opening match.

"Jenna Dufresne is the definition of an 'outstanding student-athlete'", head coach Kris Kern said of his senior stalwart. "Her class came in and has taken our program to a great level. She is one of few players to reach 1,000 kills in high school and in only 3+ seasons in college."

Dufresne finished the weekend with 49 kills and 37 digs. Other top performers include senior Gabrielle Bullock, who posted 34 kills, including a season-best 15, fellow veteran Grace Martin with 18 blocks, and sophomore Kiersten Eggleton, who ended up with 22 kills, 32 digs, and dished out 57 assists, including a season-high 20 in the finale.

"We competed extremely hard against four quality opponents," Kern said. "I'm extremely proud of our record and improvement after three long road trips to begin the season."

MATCH 1: MARYVILLE 3, WVSU 0
The Yellow Jackets were limited to just 26 kills in the Kentucky Wesleyan Invitational in a rematch with Maryville from opening weekend.

After earning the first point of the frame, Maryville went on a 9-0 run and continued to hold a steady lead, going up 16-8. State worked to narrow the gap, tallying four straight points, including a block from Martin and senior J'Lana Stone to trim things to 20-17.

The Yellow Jackets came within two points at 21-19 thanks to a kill from Martin, before ultimately dropping their first set of the season by a 19-25 mark.

The second frame started as a back-and-forth affair being tied early at 9-9. The Saints then record four of the next five points, and a three-point rally courtesy of a Dufresne and Martin kill and a block by the duo brought the Yellow Jackets within three. The gap was short lived, as Maryville surged to take the set 25-17.

What was ultimately the final frame was a game of cat-and-mouse, featuring nine ties and five lead changes. Tied at 23-23, a kill from Bullock put State at set point and looking to force a fourth frame, but Maryville responded with three straight points for a 26-24 Set 3.

Martin finished the match with eight blocks and five kills.

MATCH 2: MISSOURI WESTERN 3, WVSU 1
State suffered its second straight loss in the Friday finale, falling by scores of 23-25, 21-25, 25-19, 23-25. Dufresne tied a season-best with 20 kills, and Martin posted another six rejections.

WVSU registered nine of the first 12 points to control the contest with a 9-3 advantage, and continued to play with momentum going up by a 14-6 mark, including back-to-back aces from Eggleton.

The Griffons rallied with a 7-0 run, took 10 of the next 12 to steal the lead at 18-17. A Missouri Western error evened the score once more at 18 all before the Griffons picked up back-to-back points for a 20-18 advantage.

State chipped back with three straight points, on a pair of Grace Martin kills sandwiched in between one by Dufresne to put the Yellow Jackets back in the lead again at 21-20.

The Griffons  took the lead that was once again short lived after a Dufresne kill and MW error put WVSU back up 23-22. Missouri Western then registered three straight points to steal the set 25-23 and take the early match advantage.

Set 2 nearly mirrored the start from the opener, with State taking an early 6-3 lead as a game of cat-and-mouse began. The Griffons pulled ahead on a 5-0 run for a 15-11 lead.

Faced at a 24-15 set point, State surged, rallying for six straight points, including a solo rejection and a kill from sophomore Natalie Beer, but ultimately fell 25-21 and slipped to 2-0 in the match.

Missouri Western started the third frame with momentum, going up 4-0, but a pair of five-point sequences shifted the control to State and put them up 20-15. Back-to-back slams from Dufresne and another kill from Eggleton gave WVSU some cushion at 23-18, and the squad forced a fourth set after another kill from Dufresne and a service ace handed the Yellow Jackets the set 25-19.

It was a battle to stay alive in the fourth set, as State led as late as 13-11. A four-point rally for the Griffons handed them the lead, but the Yellow Jackets continued to battle and regained control as late as 22-21 on an Eggleton ace and Dufresne kill. Ahead at 23-22, Missouri Western capitalized on a State miscue and registered a pair of kills to secure the match at 25-23 and 3-1.
 
MATCH 3: WVSU 3, LEE 0
State returned to the win column Saturday, completing their sixth sweep of the season in the matinee match, taking down Lee by scores of 25-15, 25-10, and 25-7. The 18-point margin was the second-highest for the Yellow Jackets this season.

The first set was highlighted by Dufresne's milestone, and she finished the contest with 10 on a .625 clip. State built a seven-point advantage at 11-3, and continued to control the remainder of the frame, going up by 11 at 17-6 on a Martin kill.

The squad continued to pressure and build a heavy lead, looking to make quick work in the opening stanza by tallying three straight points to reach set point on a Martin service ace, finishing the set 25-15.

Though the second set finished in dominating fashion for WVSU at 25-10, the game started in a close battle, knotted up as late as  7-7. The Yellow Jackets then picked up seven of the next eight points to go up 14-8 on a kill from the younger Martin, sophomore setter Peri Martin.

The set finished with State registering four consecutive points, including kills from Dufresne and Eggleton, to go up 2-0 in the match.

State continued to control the momentum, winning the first four points of the third frame, and went on to record rallies of 4-0 and 6-0 to widen the gap to 13-4. A pair of service aces from sophomore Alex Darby, combined with Stone and Grace Martin kills and a couple Lee miscues finished out the frame for the Yellow Jackets, picking up a 25-7 set and 3-0 win.
 
MATCH 4: WVSU 3, MISSOURI SOUTHERN 1
After dropping the opening stanza 25-21, the Yellow Jackets regrouped to take the final three sets 25-15, 25-21, 25-16.

The Yellow Jackets were led by a pair of double-digit kills in Bullock with 15 and Dufresne with 10. Darby and junior Rachelle Madison each recorded 13 digs.

The opening stanza was back-and-forth, featuring eight ties early into the set. The Lions built a six-point advantage at 18-12, and went on to take the 1-0 lead in the match.

In a near exact repeat of the opening frame, the second set was tied at 8-8 before kills from Dufresne and Bullock, paired with a bad set from the Lion's setter gave WVSU three straight points and the 11-8 lead.

State continued to dominate the momentum, leading by as many as 10 at 21-11 and a set of back-to-back slams from Eggleton and another kill by Dufresne set WVSU up for set point, evening the match on another Dufresne kill for a 25-15 mark.

Looking to regain match control, the Lions went up 13-7 in set 3 before a five-point rally, bookended by a kill from Beer and Stone with three consecutive Missouri Southern miscues in the middle, brought wVSU within one at 13-12.

The two began to battle, tying at 17 all before another 5-0 sequence- this one featuring kills by Bullock, Beer, and a pair of Darby aces- put the Yellow Jackets ahead 22-17. A kill from Grace Martin finished the frame after some back and forth, putting WVSU up 2-1 in the match on a 25-21 score.

Looking to end with a statement, State went up 16-9 in what ultimately turned out to be the finale, and continued to grow their advantage after consecutive kills from Bullock and a Lion error put the Yellow Jackets at a nine-point lead at 19-10. A pair of kills from Beer late set up State for the match point, finalized on a kill from Stone for 25-16.

UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets finally return home, hosting the WVSU Invitational on Friday, Sept. 17. First serve is scheduled for noon at the Walker Convocation Center.