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MAC Volleyball Tournament Opening Round Update


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No. 5 Western Michigan defeats No. 8 Buffalo
3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-19)

The Western Michigan Broncos (19-13) edged the Buffalo Bulls (16-15) in just about every aspect of the game to advance to the second round of the tournament.

The Broncos and Bulls were almost even in terms of blocking and side-out percentage and both teams battled point for point until the end of each set. Ultimately, it was the Bronco’s effective serving and hitting that gave them the victory.

Western Michigan served an impressive ten aces in the match and hit at a .207 clip compared to Buffalo’s .133. The Bulls put forth their best effort in set three, leading 13-11 halfway through. The Broncos strung together a 7-1 run to regain the lead late in the set and went on to close out the match strong.

Leading the Broncos at the net were freshman middle blocker Sydney LeMay and senior outside hitter Ali Gossen as both recorded ten kills on the night. Freshman middle blocker Cassie Shado and junior middle blocker Akeila Lain led Buffalo with nine and eight kills, respectively. Western Michigan will face No. 4 Ball State Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

No. 7 Kent State defeats No. 6 Eastern Michigan
3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 26-24, 25-22)

It was a battle of the defenses between the Eagles and the Golden Flashes as both teams struggled at net. Kent State hit a low .179 clip while Eastern Michigan recorded an even lower .069.

After winning the opening set, the Eagles dropped three consecutive sets at the hands of the Golden Flashes. At the net KSU won the blocking battle 13-6 to give them a slight edge in the match. Both teams served well on the night as KSU recorded four service aces and EMU served up seven.

The fourth and final set of the match consisted of nine ties and four leads changes. The Eagles kept pace with KSU in the final stretch, but the effort came a little to late. Kent State was led at the net by Tin Aderemi-Ibitola who recorded 16 kills.

Eastern Michigan’s Stacey Perinar recorded 16 kills of her own in the effort. The Eagles will face No. 3 Miami in the second round tournament play Saturday at 7:30 p.m.