In a stellar weekend for the rightside hitter, junior Kenadee Coyle led the way for the Tops with 13 kills and a .550 hitting chart down the line. After missing last night's match in Rec Hall, Paige Briggs returned to the lineup, picking up 11 kills with a .476 hitting percentage.
WKU 0, James Madison 3: 22-25, 22-25, 24-26
Set 1
The Dukes slammed down a service ace to get the third match for the Hilltoppers this weekend underway. The Hilltopper dug back with three straight points, concluding a James Madison service error and kills from Kaylee Cox and Gabby Weihe. James Madison answered back with a solid 4-0 run until the two opponents rallied back-and-forth until the 12-10 JMU mark. The Red and White gained a slight lead after two kills from Cox and a kill right down the middle off the hand of redshirt-freshman Logan Grevengoed. The Dukes answered with sideout points to tie the frame, as WKU took a 3-1 run to gain a two-point advantage. James Madison's front row swung out for three more points of their own, to eventually take three straight, ending on a block to take the first set.
Set 2
The Hilltoppers and Dukes went back-and-forth on the board until the team in purple went two in a row, and the Tops answered back with a 3-0 run featuring back-to-back kills from Logan Grevengoed to take a slight lead. The two would volley on the board until James Madison went on a 6-1 run to force a Hilltopper timeout. Edging closely behind, the Tops worked toward an 18-19 scoreboard with two service aces, kills from all three in the front row, and a solo block by Paige Briggs. The Dukes went forward with a 3-1 run to the Hilltopper defense, not long before the Tops merged a two-point gap with two straight points that included a Grevengoed solo block. JMU captured the second frame on a double block to the left side.
Set 3
Off to the races, WKU opened the final frame on a 4-1 run with kills from Weihe, Cox, and one of 13 kills off the hand of Kenadee Coyle. JMU answered back to the Hilltoppers' run with three of their own to even the score. Wagering the gap, the Tops' 5-1 run caused a four-point score difference on the board and forced JMU head coach Lauren Steinbrecher to burn a timeout to regroup. After a back-and-forth rally on the court, the Tops exploded out with four in a row that featured a Coyle kill, double block from Cox and Grevengoed on the left, and a solo block for Kenadee Coyle yet again. With a five-point lead, WKU rallied with their opponent over the net before the Dukes pushed out three straight. Capitalizing on a tired Hilltopper defense, James Madison picked up three straight before going on a 5-1 run to take the set and the match.
SCHEDULE
Friday, September 1 – No. 22 WKU def. Colgate, 3-1
Friday, September 1 – No. 14 Penn State def. No. 22 WKU, 1-3
Saturday, September 2 – James Madison def. No. 22 WKU, 0-3
POST-MATCH NOTES
- WKU started Callie Bauer, Paige Briggs, Kaylee Cox, Kenadee Coyle, Logan Grevengoed, Gabby Weihe, and redshirt-sophomore Kelsey Brangers in at libero.
- Saturday's meeting was the fifth between both sides in program history, as James Madison continues to lead with a 4-1 all-time series record to WKU.
- Four different Hilltoppers: Briggs, Bauer, Brangers, and Mosley recorded service aces from the line in the three-set match.
- Junior Kenadee Coyle had another career day from the right side, picking up 13 kills off of 20 swings for a .550 hitting clip.
- After a night off due to illness, Paige Briggs was back in the Tops' lineup, only recording one error against 11 kills for a .476 hitting percentage.
- In the back row, Kaylee Cox collected 11 digs, followed by Kelsey Brangers with six, and Callie Bauer with five.
- The Hilltoppers will be back to Diddle Arena in two back-to-back weekends to host the Holiday Inn-University Plaza Invitational and the first inaugural Alyssa Cavanaugh Classic.
How to Follow WKU Volleyball: For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook.
