By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
LARAMIE, Wyo. – It all came down to a pair of close battles for the Tennessee Tech volleyball team Friday afternoon, as the Golden Eagles fell to Idaho State, 3-1, in the final match-up of the UniWyo Invite in Laramie, Wyo.
In the opening set, the purple and gold battled back from a pair of small deficits early to take a lead of 14-11. Momentum swung back to the Bengals and the two sides traded blows right up to the final point, where a kill led to a 25-23 victory for Idaho State.
The stats were fairly even across the board in the set, with both sides matching 15 kills, eights digs, and 3.0 total blocks. Set two saw the Golden Eagles flip a two-point hole into a lead they would never relinquish, pacing ahead of the Bengals by as many as six points.
Behind a more efficient attack than ISU and two more blocks, the Tech crew delivered a 25-21 win to even the match at 1-1. The purple and gold struggled to keep its offensive attack consistent in set three, watching the Bengals inch out to a 23-17 lead.
The Golden Eagles dup deep and rolled out a 4-0 run to cut the deficit to 23-21 and pulled to within a 24-23 score before the Bengals gathered the winning kill. Five team blocks lifted the comeback effort from the purple and gold.
The Idaho State attack simply couldn't miss its mark in the match finale, leading to a .520 hitting percentage with 15 kills and just two errors. The Golden Eagles managed 11 kills of their own, but couldn't keep pace in the 25-17 defeat.
Earning her second All-Tournament honor is as many events, outside hitter Madolyn Isringhausen tied for the team lead with 12 kills and paced the purple and gold with 12 digs for her fourth double-double of the year. The junior also tallied a pair of blocks and an ace.
Rookie right side Ava Schubert also produced 12 terminations on the day, setting a new season-high to go along with five digs, and four blocks. Junior middle blocker Elena Wallace boasted a match-leading and season-best six total rejections, adding six kills to the mix on a .357 attack.
Outside Bella Powell just missed the double-digit-kill mark with nine in the match, securing two aces and four digs as well. Middle Skylar Boom contributed seven kills and four blocks with libero Olivia Taylor racked up seven digs.
Sophomore setter Jordan Karlen distributed the ball well through the contest, totaling 42 assists with three kills and two blocks. Her 11 digs led to her fourth double-double of the campaign, tying with Isringhausen for the team lead.
Tech officially kicks off Ohio Valley Conference action next weekend, returning to the Hooper Eblen Center to host in-state rival Tennessee State Friday, Sept. 22 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, Sept. 23 at 12:00 p.m.
File photo by Jim Dillon
