Nov. 8, 2013
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - The Western Kentucky University volleyball team (23-5, 13-1) opened its five-game homestand on the right foot Friday night, as the Lady Toppers cruised by Louisiana-Lafayette (18-11, 8-7) with a 3-0 win (25-12, 25-17, 25-15) in E.A. Diddle Arena.
"I think we really controlled things on our side of the net tonight," WKU head coach Travis Hudson said. "We knew that is was important to get off to a great start because Lafayette really feeds off emotion and energy, and they never really had a chance to get that going tonight."
Sophomore Haley Bodway led WKU with eight kills and a .636 hitting mark while junior Heather Boyan followed with six. Four Lady Toppers tabbed five kills each. Senior Melanie Stutsman posted 25 assists and was one shy of tying her career high in service aces as she had six in the contest.
Defensively, WKU totaled five blocks, led by sophomore Noelle Langenkamp and redshirt senior Paige Wessel with three each. Senior Ashley Potts notched nine digs while Stutsman had seven.
For ULL, Kelly Wiesmann led with a match-high 11 kills while Lavinia Tataran had nine. Caitlyn Auxilien had 10 digs while Chanelle Gardner led at the net with two blocks.
WKU came out of the gates aggressive, using a 6-0 run to pull ahead 14-4. Bodway held the hot hand after notching six kills in the first set, including two as the final pair of points, en route to helping WKU to a 25-12 win.
Statistically even in the second set, WKU was able to pull out a 25-17 win before the break. The Lady Toppers recorded four of its 10 service aces in the frame, as the second one by Stutsman put WKU on top 11-7 and force a ULL timeout. Freshman Georgia O'Connell notched the last ace of the set to give WKU its largest lead at 21-12 before closing the set for a 2-0 lead.
With ULL down 6-3 early in the third, the Ragin' Cajuns used a 6-1 run to pull ahead 10-8 and have WKU call a break to the benches. Out of the timeout, a kill from Boyan plus three aces from Stutsman helped the Lady Toppers put together six-straight points and overtake the lead at 19-13. WKU ended the set with another 6-0 spree to win 25-15.
WKU is back on the court Sunday, Nov. 10 at noon against UALR in Diddle Arena. With a win, WKU clinches the No. 1 seed of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament later this month in Troy plus at least a share of the league's regular-season title.
It is also Faith and Family Day, as a church bulletin will get you into the match for free.
For all the latest news and information on WKU volleyball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program on Twitter via @TravisHudsonWKU and @WKUVolleyball.
