Volleyball Falls in Rematch at Austin Peay

Joe Pecoraro

Oct 5, 2021 5:57 AM Oct 5, 2021 6:04 AM

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CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - SIUE volleyball dropped its second match of the weekend on Saturday afternoon, as the Cougars fell at Austin Peay in straight sets (19-25, 10-25, 18-25).

The match started with both squads trading blows, but a late offensive outburst from the Governors doomed the visitors and resulted in a first-set defeat for SIUE. The Governors carried their momentum into the second set, dominating offensively and defensively en route to a 25-10 second set. The third set saw the hosts start off strong in the early moments, mounting as large as a nine-point lead; however, a pair of lengthy Cougar scoring runs brought SIUE within striking distance. APSU would follow with a run of their own, and a Cougar comeback effort proved too late and gave the hosts the straight-set victory.

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As a team, the Cougars hit for a conference season-low .059, and the Govs hit above .300. Individually, the Cougars were led by Sydney Hummert, who once again led the Red & White with nine kills. Julia Treichel followed closely behind with seven kills.

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The Cougars will return to action on Tuesday night, as they head to Charleston for a matchup at in-state foe Eastern Illinois.

Cougars Downed at Austin Peay

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - In their first Ohio Valley Conference road trip of the 2021 season, SIUE volleyball fell in straight sets to the Austin Peay Governors on Friday night (17-25, 16-25, 21-25).

The Cougars started off strong, building a 5-1 lead to begin the opening set and not surrendering the lead through the media timeout. Following the stoppage, the Governors caught lightning and stormed ahead thanks to a 10-0 scoring run. During that run, Governors outside Brooke Moore registered eight kills and finished the set with three additional kills. Moore totaled 21 kills on 47 attempts with just two errors, good for a .422 hitting percentage. The second set saw a back-and-forth affair for the bulk of the game, but another late scoring run doomed the Cougars' outstanding offensive efforts and handed the hosts a second-set win. The third set ran in similar fashion to the second, with both squads trading blows; however, despite a late offensive outburst from Annie Ellis and the Cougars, the Governors' powerful front line proved too much for the Red & White to handle and APSU would claim the third set and win the match.

"It's hard to tell by the score, but I thought we competed well from the start," said SIUE Head Coach Kendall Paulus following the contest. "We need to find out how to finish as strong as we start and not let opponents get on as many runs. We created more swings which we wanted in transition, but passing struggled more than usual so siding out was a challenge."

The Cougars were led individually led by Julia Treichel, who registered eight kills and 11 digs to nearly notch her seventh double-double of the season. Savannah Christian also registered eight kills on 14 attempts with no errors, good for an outstanding .571 hitting percentage. Sydney Hummert led the Cougars with nine kills. Alyse Drifka, who entered the match coming off a career-best 35 assists, notched 29 in Friday's contest. Grace Hurst, who donned the libero jersey against the Governors, led SIUE with 15 digs.