The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Central Michigan
Volleyball sweeps homestand with big win over Central Michigan
October 20 | Women's Volleyball
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AKRON, Ohio – For the second straight night, the Akron volleyball team protected its home floor in dominating fashion, putting together a gutsy four set victory over defending conference tournament champion Central Michigan, 25-19, 12-25, 25-20, 26-24.
The match marked the first career win over CMU for head coach Ron Arenz, and was also the Zips' first victory over the Chippewas since the 2005 season.
Senior Morgan Kuhn was the spark the Zips needed to set the tone this time around, as she was virtually untouchable on both sides of the ball. The setter dumped five kills over without an error in 11 attempts for a .455 attack percentage, in addition to picking up 38 assists and 15 digs for her second double-double of the weekend. Kuhn also added a pair of service aces, a solo block and a block-assist to keep Akron's momentum at an all-time high.
UA was forced to adjust to Central's tight blocking game, and the result was a relatively balanced offensive performance. Although as a team the Zips were out-hit, Alex Cocklin had another field day from the outside, leading both teams with 16 kills – 11 of which came in the final two sets. Chelsea Harvey added eight and Alex Wiederholt stepped up with six kills of her own to diversify the Akron attack.
The first set has grown to become a crucial turning point for Akron this season. When the Zips hold on to win the opening stanza, they are 10-1 on the year, and after UA sprinted out of the gate with a 5-0 lead against the Chippewas it was almost foreshadowing good things to come. Akron's lead would grow by as many as 10 in that first set thanks to the team hitting percentage of .265.
The Zips' only lapse of the evening came in the second set when they struggled to find a way around CMU's block. Central posted eight block-assists and two solos to knock Akron's swinging tally into the negatives.
Akron came out of the break prepared to deliver payback and that is exactly what happened. Down 15-13, the Zips tacked on eight unanswered points to regain the advantage at 21-15. An ace from Jill Paluch and a kill from Harvey would bring Akron to set point. Central Michigan countered on the next play, but Cocklin was able to come through with the final score.
The fourth set was the most hotly contested period of the night with neither team holding a lead greater than four. Behind the power of Kuhn's serve, the Zips unleashed another 8-0 run midway through the set to go ahead17-15.
CMU fought back and UA's small lead dwindled away as the score tied at 20, 21 and 22. Akron had its look at two match points before the score tied again at 24, but after calling a timeout the Zips forced back-to-back CMU errors to seal the win.
Akron played like a team on a mission, and now with an even 5-5 record in the Mid-American Conference, that mission is to advance to the MAC Tournament at the end of the regular season.
Prior to Saturday's match against Central Michigan, Akron was No. 7 overall in the conference and would have qualified for the league tournament if it started tomorrow. The top eight teams in the conference overall advance to the tournament, which is scheduled for Nov. 16-18 at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.
Next up on Akron's schedule is its last split weekend of the year. The Zips will take on travel partner Buffalo on the road Thursday, Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. before coming back home to host their final West Division opponent Toledo on Saturday, Oct. 27 at 5 p.m.
