Box Score

RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky won its second straight match on Saturday, beating Eastern Illinois 3-1 at McBrayer Arena. Lauren Snyder and Lindsey Loescher led EKU (2-12, 2-3 OVC) with 21 and 13 kills respectively, and junior Abby O’Connor recorded a career-best 36 digs.

Game scores were 21-25, 25-22, 25-17 and 25-20.

Melanie Boykins and Stephanie Arnold finished with nine kills each for Eastern Illinois (7-12, 1-6 OVC). Five Panthers posted 10 or more digs led by Brittany Wallace with 18.

Snyder hit .413, finishing with just two errors in 46 attacks. Loescher added three aces and a pair of block assists to her totals.

Eastern Kentucky totaled 60 kills and a .218 attack percentage. EIU finished with 42 kills and hit .103 for the match. The Colonels held a 9-6 advantage in blocks.

The first set was tied 11 times through the first 22 points. A kill by Kelsey Orr of Eastern Illinois knotted the score at 11-11. Three EIU attack errors helped the Colonels roll off five unanswered to go on top 16-11, but the Panthers didn’t quit. Eastern Illinois tied the set at 18-18 after an ace and an EKU attack error. EIU then scored four straight to turn a 20-19 deficit into a 23-20 lead. A kill by Jorie Dieter gave the visitors set-point and then an EKU attack error staked the Panthers to a 1-0 lead.

In the second set, Eastern Illinois led by four, 15-11, before Eastern Kentucky scored five of the next six points to tie the score at 16-16. With the Colonels clinging to a one-point lead, 23-22, Autumn Harms recorded a kill to bring the team to set-point. An EIU attack error on the next sequence ended the set 25-22 in favor of EKU, and tied the match 1-1.

The third set belonged to the Colonels. Eastern Kentucky scored the first five points and led by nine, 14-5, after a kill by Kate Hendle. A kill by Loescher kept the margin at seven, 20-13. Snyder put the set away and gave EKU a 2-1 lead with a kill.

With the fourth set tied 3-3, Eastern Kentucky scored four straight to build a cushion. The Panthers would never get closer than three points the rest of the way. Another 4-0 run made it an eight-point margin, 18-10. A kill by Loescher stretched it to nine, 21-12. EIU used one last effort to get within three, 23-20, on back-to-back aces by Boykins, but the Colonels scored the next two points to end the match.

Hendle finished with 50 assists and 11 digs. Harms recorded 10 kills and four block assists.

The Colonels will put their two-match winning streak on the line at Austin Peay on Tuesday. The match in Clarksville, Tenn., is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET.