Box Score vs. IUPUI  |  Box Score vs. Radford

RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky opened the 2022 season with a pair of 3-0 wins in the Colonel Classic at McBrayer Arena.
 
EKU beat IUPUI 25-19, 25-13 and 25-19 in the first match of the day.  The Colonels (2-0) took down Radford, 25-23, 25-22 and 25-22.
 
The Colonel Classic will conclude with two matches on Saturday.  Radford and IUPUI face off at 11 a.m.  Tennessee-Martin and the Colonels play each other at 1:30 p.m.  The first 100 fans at the EKU match will receive one FREE football ticket to Eastern Kentucky's home opener.
 
Katie McKune led Eastern Kentucky with eight kills and hit .263 against IUPUI.  Chloe Mason served up seven aces to go along with 17 assists and four kills. 
 
With the first set tied 16-16, the Colonels seized control with a 5-0 run that started with an ace from Mason and ended with two more aces from the newcomer.  Back-to-back errors by the Jaguars ended the set, 25-19, in favor of the home team.  EKU scored the first 11 points in the second set and cruised.  IUPUI was within one, 13-12, midway through the third set before the Colonels went on a 4-1 run to build a four-point cushion.  Carson Ledford and Maddy Campbell each had a kill.  McKune's kill ended the set, 25-19, and the match.
 
Eastern Kentucky had three more aces, 8-5, and three more blocks, 7-4, than the Jaguars in the match.
 
Sarah Mitchell posted a team-best 11 kills and a team-high 15 digs against Radford.  Mason had 16 assists and Campbell had five blocks.  As a team, EKU made just 13 errors and held a 7-1 edge in blocks.
 
In the first set, the Highlanders used a 5-0 run to go from down 16-14 to in front 19-16.  The Colonels came right back and answered five straight of their own.  After kills from AG Vandagriff and Campbell, Radford made two straight errors to give Eastern Kentucky a 21-19 edge.  With the set tied 22-22, two straight kills from Vandagriff gave EKU set-point.  Moments later Molly Michalak finished off the two-point win.
 
The Colonels scored seven of the first 10 in the second set and went in front 16-9 on a kill from McKune and a Radford error.  Mitchell closed out the set with a kill to give Eastern Kentucky a 2-0 lead in the match.  In the third set, the Highlanders closed a five-point EKU lead to two at 20-18 and 24-22 before Mitchell ended the match with her final kill.