BUCKHANNON, W.VA. – West Virginia State Volleyball returned to the court after over a week, and extended their win streak to eight games after facing a pair of familiar foes in the opening day of the WVWC Invitational.

The Yellow Jackets consecutive set streak was snapped, but the squad still defeated league foe Alderson Broaddus 3-1 (25-15, 24-26, 25-5, 25-16) and in a rematch from earlier this month, swept Kentucky State for the second time (25-10, 25-19, 25-17).

WVSU improves to 10-1 on the season.

MATCH 1: WVSU 3, ALDERSON BROADDUS 1
The Yellow Jackets set streak was snapped at 19, but State followed up the dropped frame by limiting the Battlers to the fewest number of points allowed this season with a 25-5 third set.

Junior Diamond'Nique Young turned in a season-high with 20 kills in the contest, hitting at a strong .364 hitting efficiency. Also tallying double-digit kills was graduate student Grace Martin, who turned in a season-best 10 along with eight total blocks, also a season high and one short of her career best. Martin registered a stellar .667 percentage during the match.

Junior Alex Darby was one kill shy of a double-double, finishing with nine kills to accompany 14 digs. Sophomore Ashlynne Davis topped the squad in that category with 16.
State won five of the first seven points before AB took the lead on four unanswered, to which the Yellow Jackets responded with a 6-0 run to build their lead to 11-6. The Battlers continued to threaten, but a 7-1 rally from WVSU that featured a pair of kills from Young, sealed the set for State at 25-15.

The second set was a game of cat-and-mouse, as the squads reached a 12-12 stalemate before the Yellow Jackets hit a 5-0 run to take a 17-12 advantage. The Battlers worked to close the gap, trimming the deficit to just one point at 21-20. A kill by Martin and sophomore Natalie Beer gave WVSU cushion at 23-20, but AB surged late for six of the final seven points to take the frame 26-24 and even the match at one set apiece.

It seemed to be a tale of two sets in the third, as State exploded and registered a nine-point rally en route to a 25-5 third frame and 2-1 match lead.

The fourth set began as a close contest as WVSU held the slight edge at 7-6, then exploded for eight of the next nine points to build a 15-7 gap in a sequence that featured both a pair of Darby kills and Martin blocks. AB again attempted to threaten, but after four consecutive points (including a solo rejection and a slam from Martin), State was able to pick up the victory 25-16 and 3-1.

MATCH 2: WVSU 3, KENTUCKY STATE 0
The Yellow Jackets took advantage of their talented roster in the nightcap, with 17 players appearing in the match and 16 recording at least one statistic.

Young was nearly flawless, tallying a .900 hitting percentage as she posted nine kills and added four blocks. Freshman Kennedy Stanley was impressive, posting three kills, tying a career-best performance.

State opened up with seven of the first nine points, and then capped that off with a 5-0 run to go up 12-3.

After registering nine consecutive points in a sequence that featured two aces from Davis, the squad went up 22-6 and cruised to the opening stanza win at 25-10.

The second frame was tied early at 6-6, and then State narrowly held the lead at 8-7 before a 5-1 run pushed the squad to a 13-8 mark. The Thorobreds trimmed the deficit  to 14-12, and continued to pressure late in the set at a 22-19 score before a trio of kills, bookended by rookie Ansley Baker, pushed the Yellow Jackets to a 2-0 match score at 25-19.

Kentucky State led in what was ultimately the finale 8-7 before four consecutive points found their favor for State as part of a 9-1 run that put WVSU up 16-9. Another 5-0 run for the Yellow Jackets, this one featuring a pair of kills from junior Kiersten Eggleton, lifted the team to 21-11, proved valuable as Kentucky State rattled off five straight points, cutting the lead to 21-16.

Three consecutive KSU miscues handed State match point, and then Eggleton sealed the set and match at 25-17.

Eggleton finished the contest with seven kills, 10 assists, and five digs.

UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets return to the court at the WVWC Invitational Saturday with another familiar foe, taking on Glenville State at 10 am. Live stats will be provided.