Akron Volleyball’s Strong Season Ends in MAC Tournament Loss to Buffalo

Thursday, November 21

Bowling Green, Ohio

7 PM

University of Akron

University at Buffalo

Photo by: Ernie Aranyosi

Akron Volleyball’s Strong Season Ends in MAC Tournament Loss to Buffalo

November 21 | Women's Volleyball

Follow Akron Volleyball on Facebook and Twitter

Box Score (PDF)

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – After its first tournament appearance in seven years, Akron volleyball's season comes to an end after a 3-0 loss to Buffalo in the first round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament (25-15, 25-20, 25-21) Thursday night in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Buffalo advances to the next round and will face Bowling Green on Friday, Nov. 22 at 7 p.m.

"We continued with our strength of serve and pass, but unfortunately didn't find a way to be terminal, especially early in the match. Eleven hitting errors with seven of them being not blocked was just a tough way to open the match. Certainly proud of what this group achieved but it certainly proves that we have a lot more that we're capable of, and hopefully we can chase that in the next year" said head coach Tom Hanna.

Leading the way offensively for the Zips were seniors Elya Karsner (Frankfort, Ky.) and Ashley Richardson (Doylestown, Ohio) who finished with eight and five kills, respectively. Junior setter Emily Weigand (Burton, Ohio) dished out 21 assists while adding three kills and three aces of her own.

Defensively, junior libero Taylor Sharrits (Concord, Ohio) paced the back row with 21 digs. Sophomore Megan Kelly (Lakewood, Ill.) had a strong match at the net with four blocks (two solo, two assists).

Akron got off to an early 2-0 lead in the first set, thanks to an ace by Weigand to open the match, followed by an error by Buffalo. A 9-3 run by the Bulls propelled them ahead, 9-5. Later in the set, a three-point run by the Zips decreased the deficit to two, thanks to a kill by junior Alexis Adleta (West Chester, Ohio), a block by Kelly and an opponent error.

Buffalo put together two more runs of five and four points, propelling them to take the first set, 25-15.

The Zips struggled to find their groove early in the first set, as the Bulls gained a 13-5 lead at the midway point of the set. From there, Akron's offense begun to wake up, taking nine of the next 11 points, cutting the deficit to one, 15-14. Buffalo took eight of the next 10 points, propelling it to take the second set, 25-20.

Akron had its strongest showing of the night in the third set, as there were eight ties throughout. The Bulls led 9-8 early, until a strong response by the Zips which included two kills by sophomore Teagan Ochaya (Mentor, Ohio), two kills by Karsner and a kill by Richardson, put the Zips ahead, 13-10.

Another late three-point run by the Zips put them ahead 19-16, however the Buffalo responded well by rattling off nine of the last 11 points, taking the final set, 25-21, and ultimately the match.

Akron ends the 2019 campaign with its best record in seven years at 16-11 overall and 9-7 in the conference. The Zips' MAC tournament berth was also the team's first appearance in the quarterfinals in seven seasons.

"With 13 returning players and a solid incoming class, our future is certainly bright, and we'll continue to have high expectations for everything we do athletically, academically and socially" said head coach Tom Hanna.