BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - The Western Kentucky University volleyball team defeated Tennessee State 3-0 (25-10, 25-23, 25-17) on Tuesday night at Kean Hall in Nashville, Tenn.
"We were very glad to get the win," WKU coach Travis Hudson said. "It was a little bit of an up-and-down performance. We are a young team, and we have to learn to put a complete effort out there. It is a lesson learned. Tennessee State played very hard in their home opener, stayed with it, but it was good to see us make a few plays at the end of that second game with the game on the line as well."
WKU (2-2) had four players with hitting percentages above .400 and finished the match with a team hitting percentage of .363, its highest of the season thus far. Tennessee State (0-1) was limited to a .122 hitting percentage.
Sophomore Jordyn Skinner led the Lady Toppers with 10 kills and added seven digs, while classmate Sarah Rogers paced the defensive efforts with 10 digs. Junior Tiffany Elmore recorded six kills and one block with a team-high .545 hitting percentage.
Junior Lindsay Williams finished the night with five kills and seven blocks, and freshman Melanie Stutsman recorded 20 or more assists for the fourth straight match, totaling 27 against TSU. Stutsman, an Indiana native, rounded out her night with five kills and seven digs.
The two teams went back and forth at the beginning of the first set. With a 7-5 lead, WKU went on to score 10 straight points for a 17-5 advantage. TSU tallied only five points the remainder of the match.
The second set was a tight battle the entire way, with neither team leading by more than five after WKU led 9-4. With the set tied at 20-20, the Lady Toppers pulled it out in the end with some key points, including a kill on set point by Skinner.
WKU jumped out to an early 11-5 lead in the final set and went on to score six of the next 10 points. Following a timeout by Tennessee State, Western Kentucky University played consistently to stay ahead and wrap up its second victory of the season.
The Lady Toppers return to action this weekend when they travel to Cincinnati for the Xavier Invitational. The two-day tournament will feature teams from Northeastern, IPFW and host Xavier.
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