Story by Keenan Hall
Staff Writer
Murray State dropped its second five-set match of the season to the University of Southeast Missouri Redhawks, 28-26, 25-17, 25-21, 25-16 and 15-9.
After the Racers fell behind in the first two sets, they regrouped and fought back to win the next two and earn a fifth set.
Starting the match, Murray State jumped to a swift 4-2 lead. The Redhawks answered with three consecutive points to tie the score at five.
The Racers junior outside hitter Rachel Giustino had a big day tallying back-to-back double-doubles with 19 kills and 13 digs in the match thanks in part to Giustino’s five kills in the first set. Her strong play helped propel the Racers to a three-point lead 19-16.
SEMO secured an 8-5 scoring run late in the first set to retie the score at 24. After the tie, the Redhawks added consecutive kills to win the first set 28-26.
SEMO took advantage of the comeback win late and led early in the second set as well.
Brown and sophomore middle-blocker Katirah Johnson both scored kills to knot the score 2-2, however, the Redhawks went on to extend their lead to 10-5. Brown had the second-most kills for Murray State with 14 and four blocks.
It was more of the same during the second set as the Redhawks led by as many as 12, until Johnson got a kill that sparked a late scoring run for Murray State. SEMO continued to fight and won the set 25-17.
It was a different match after the break, as neither team could create a larger lead than two points in the third set. Both teams were exchanging points back and forth, until a 4-1 run by the Racers earned them the win 25-21.
Fueled the previous tight set win, Murray State began the fourth set scoring four straight points. The Redhawks didn’t lead at any point in the fourth set, while the Racers rode their momentum into the fifth set.
UT Martin secured early leads in the first two sets, and, Murray State secured early leads in the third and fourth sets. The Racers took advantage of its strong starts to tie the match score 2-2.
The Redhawks opened the fifth set with an 11-3 lead. The Racers trailed by as few as five, but, SEMO cut the rally short by winning the fifth set 15-9.
Murray State’s sophomore middle-blocker Ashley McBee earned a career-high 50 assists and Johnson totaled 13 kills and four blocks. Racer freshman middle-blocker Kolby McClelland led her team with five blocks. Murray State sophomore libero Becca Fernandez held down the back line with 19 digs.
The Racers (6-8) (0-2) lost in their first two conference matches, and, continue their long road trip for game three in the OVC. The matchup is volleyball’s first Battle of the Border matchup against rival Austin Peay State University. The match will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 25, in Clarksville, Tennessee.
