The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Kent State
Volleyball comes up short at Kent State in four sets
October 03 | Women's Volleyball
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KENT, Ohio -- Despite a dominant second set and a strong showing out of the intermission, Akron could not compensate for its slow start in a 3-1 loss on the road at Kent State on Friday night (25-18, 19-25, 25-23, 25-22).
The Zips limited themselves to just two hitting errors and hit .324 as a team in the second frame, but it was not enough to slow down KSU's offensive attack.
UA slides to 7-11 overall and 1-2 in the Mid-American Conference, while Kent State moves to 9-7 and 1-2 in the MAC, earning a half point in the PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge standings.
Mary Delich continued her offensive efficiency for Akron, tallying 10 kills to hit .318 for the match. The senior also had a hand in five block-assists and one solo stuff.
Freshman Anna Wenger put up 11 kills and six digs, and Kelsey Wilson added eight kills. Karley Kusan fueled the offense with 38 assists, chipping in four kills of her own.
Kent State was led by the one-two punch of Lauren Engleman (15 kills) and Bridget Wilhelm (14 kills).
Akron fell into an early hole in the first set, as Kent State used its home crowd and several UA errors to build a five-point cushion that would grow to as many as eight with the score at 23-15. The Zips struggled to find their footing offensively with the Flashes hitting .346 to UA's .062.
The second set was a different story, with Akron taking control from the first serve and never relinquishing. Behind the serve of Wilson, the Zips sprinted out to a 4-0 lead on a trio of kills from Wenger, Delich and Kusan.
The Flashes began to chip away, trimming Akron's lead to two points with the score at 10-8, but the Zips rallied for a 7-1 run that was peppered with three kills from Wenger who found her stride in the second set.
A kill at the hands of Amanda Bedell put the Zips ahead 20-12, but it proved to be a fight to the finish for Akron. Kent State went on a 6-1 run to bring the score to 23-19, but a Wilson kill would give the Zips their first look at set point. Wenger and Delich teamed up on the very next play to deny KSU's Kelly Hutchison a kill, getting credit for the block and tying the match at one set apiece.
After the break, the third set saw six tie scores before either team reached 10 points. A Wenger kill gave Akron a 9-8 advantage in the earlygoing, but Kent State answered with five straight scores that a UA timeout could not stop.
Akron got the difference back down to one several times, and squandered KSU's first two attempts at set point thanks to a pair of Smagacz kills. Kent State called a timeout with a 24-23 lead, and was able to find the floor on a kill right out of the huddle to end the third set.
Nearly mirroring the set before it, the fourth set saw much of the same with UA grabbing an early lead that it just was not able to maintain down the stretch. With the score tied at 21-all, Kent State used a few untimely Akron errors to score on four of the following five plays, bringing the match to a close.
The Zips return to the court Saturday night when they travel to MAC East leader Ohio. First serve is set for 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center in Athens. The Bobcats defeated Buffalo at home in three sets Friday night.
