Marian (Ind.) Sweeps Spalding

INDIANAPOLIS - The Marian University volleyball team recovered quickly from defeat on Saturday with a 25-9, 25-20, 25-20 victory over Spalding University on Monday night at the Physical Education Center. The Knights improved to 6-9 on the season with the victory.

The Knights jumped out to a 5-1 lead over Spalding early in the first set, but the Golden Eagles were able to close the gap to three, 8-5, before the Knights went on a 10-0 run to open an 18-5 lead. They maintained their lead and even pushed it to 14, 21-7 and 22-8 before finishing off the 25-9 victory. The Knights had just seven kills in the first set, but took advantage of 10 Spalding errors to earn the 1-0 lead.

The second set was more of the same as the Knights were able to jump out to an 11-5 lead. However, Spalding cut the lead back to one, 18-17, before the Knights scored seven of the final 10 points to earn the 25-20 victory and take a 2-0 lead. This time the Knights tallied 11 kills in the set with junior Kelsee Evans leading the way with three.

Another quick MU lead paced the third set as the Knights opened a 12-6 lead. They were able to maintain their lead until it was 22-17. The teams played 3-3 volleyball after that, but the Knights had enough to secure the sweep and earn the victory. MU tallied eight kills and took advantage of nine Spalding errors to earn the victory. Freshman Kreigha Henney tallied two kills and a perfect hitting percentage in the final set.

Evans led all hitters with a team-high six kills, while freshman Becky Gramer and senior Carrie Sherman each added five kills. Freshman Kacie Kelly tallied 11 assists, while sophomore Holly Wasmund added 10 assists. Freshman Katie Kaiser led the Knights' defense with nine digs, while Evans added a match-high six blocks.

The Knights head to Goshen College on Wednesday night to take on the Maple Leafs in Mid-Central College Conference action. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. from the Gingerich Center.