Volleyball Opens Season With Sweep of Valdosta State

TAMPA, Fla. (Sept. 6, 2019) - Central Missouri Jennies Volleyball kicked down the door to their 2019 season with an emphatic 3-0 sweep of Valdosta State (25-14, 25-16, 27-25). It was the first of four games for the Jennies this weekend in Florida.

Play-by-Play
• The Jennies didn't have much trouble with the Blazers. They went on a big run to take over the first set, led for the entire second and mounted a comeback to complete the sweep.
• Seven different Jennies landed kills, five had six or more and UCM passed the ball around well. 
• As a team, UCM hit .303 while the Blazers were held to just .186. The Jens landed 43 kills on 99 swings with just 13 errors.
• Central Missouri also got a bunch of points on serves, scoring eight aces and going perfect on serve reception.
• After going up early in set one, 4-2, Valdosta State scored five straight and took their largest lead, 7-4. The Blazers still led by two, 11-9, when the Jennies scored eight straight points. Jackie Storm scored three of the points herself on service aces, while while Blazers also committed four errors. From there, UCM was able to cruise to a set one win, 25-14. Aubree Bell closed out the frame with two kills and a service ace in the final four points.
• Set two saw the Jennies climb to an 8-2 lead, forcing a Blazers timeout. The set started with an ace from Ally Offerdahl and Rylee Neigenfind scored four kills in the 8-2 run. The Jennies never trailed, and pushed their lead to as much as 12, 20-8, thanks to a 5-0 run with kills from Neigenfind, Fisher and Sydney Lierz. Back-to-back Hannah VanBuskirk kills ended the set and put UCM on top 2-0.
• The third set was a real battle, with the Blazers looking to keep the game alive. They took an early 6-2 lead, and led by as much as five, 13-8. A 4-0 Jennies run tied the game at 16 and gave UCM their first lead since 2-1. Bell, Offerdahl and Engelken all put down kills during the stretch. The teams traded points after that with neither side gaining more than a two-point advantage. The Jennies had a chance to end it up 24-22, but a ball-handling error and a Blazer kill tied the game at 24. Still tied at 25, the Jennies finally ended the match with kills from VanBuskirk and Fisher.

Jennies Stat Leaders
• Rylee Neigenfind was the only Jennie in double-figure kills, landing 12. She fell two digs shy of a double-double with eight. She hit .500 for the match.
• Hannah VanBuskirk finished the match with eight kills.
• Hannah Engelken led the Jens with three blocks and added six kills.
• Audrey Fisher and Aubree Bell each scored six kills as well..
• Ally Offerdahl centered the UCM offense with 31 assists. She also chipped in three kills and four digs.

For the Blazers
• Jessie Mooney led VSU with 12 kills.
• Grace Daughtery added six more.
• Tammy Reyes-Perez picked up double-double with 24 assists and 10 digs.
• Rebecca Sills also recorded 10 digs.

News and Notes
• This was the first ever meeting for UCM and the Blazers. The Jennies now lead the all-time series 1-0.
• It was a milestone night for the middles as Audrey Fisher reached 750 career kills and Hannah Engelken 250.
• Rylee Neigenfind put back her 100th career block.
• Hannah VanBuskirk recorded her 20th career dig.
• Coach Piontek remains undefeated when the Jennies hit .300 or better. UCM's attack percentage for the match was .303 and Coach Piontek is now 111-0 when the Jens hit .300.
• Freshman Jackie Storm scored three service aces. That matches the high for a match from all of last season. 

Up Next
• The Jennies have a tall task ahead of them tonight as they take on the defending NCAA Division II Champions Tampa at 6 p.m.