Zips Earn Split on Opening Day of Xavier Tournament

Friday, September 6

Cincinnati, OH

11 AM

University of Akron

1-3

William & Mary

2-1

AKRON

Zips Earn Split on Opening Day of Xavier Tournament

September 06 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

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Match 1 - Box Score
Match 2 - Box Score

Cincinnati, Ohio - The University of Akron volleyball team earned a split on the opening day of play at the Xavier Tournament on Friday.

The Zips fell to William and Mary, 3-0 (25-16, 28-26, 25-22), before defeating host Xavier, 3-2 (23-25, 15-25, 25-18, 27-25, 15-13).

Akron is now 2-3, while William and Mary improved to 2-2, and Xavier falls to 2-2.

Leading the way for the Zips offensively in the first match were senior Ashley Richardson (Doylestown, Ohio) and junior Alexis Adleta (West Chester, Ohio), who finished with 11 and 9 kills, respectively. Junior setter Emily Weigand (Burton, Ohio) dished out 33 assists, while adding three kills and two aces of her own. Defensively, Taylor Sharrits (Conord, Ohio), Teagan Ochaya (Mentor, Ohio) and Adleta led the way with 10 digs a-piece.

"We didn't execute on a technical level very often this morning. When we did, we were pretty good; we passed and made good setting choices to get us good opportunities that we converted on. Other moments weren't very crisp. We did make some good tactical adjustments and once again had some people come off the bench and make our team better" said coach Tom Hanna.

The first set saw the Tribe gain an early lead on the Zips and not look back. Akron started the game strong, thanks to a block by Hannah Yaconis (Batavia, Ill.) and Ochaya (Mentor, Ohio). The Tribe quickly turned the tide, rattling off 10 consecutive points of its own, garnering a 10-1 lead.

The Zips struggled to get going offensively, until late in the first set, where they slowly began to heat up via two consecutive kills by Adleta, and another by Weigand. The Tribe were able to re-gather, and take the set, 25-16.

The Zips, however, would not go down without a fight. In the second set, they found themselves down (7-5) early, but were able to score three consecutive points to take the lead, 8-7, capped off with a service ace by Sharrits.

The set was filled with much back-and-forth scoring, which included an astounding 20 ties and 12 lead changes. For the entirety of the set, the scored stayed within two points, with each team siding out almost immediately. The Tribe, however, would ultimately come out victorious, 28-26.

The third set was very similar to the second. The set begun and ended with back-and-forth scoring, including 11 ties and 8 lead changes. The Zips' offense, however, could not keep up with that of the Tribe, as William and Mary took the set, 25-22, clinching the match victory.

Against Xavier, Richardson paved the way for the Zips' success, posting 15 kills to just 2 errors, as well as providing stellar defense, finishing with 9 blocks (4 solo). Setter Weigand finished with a solid 46 assists while adding 18 digs. Defensively, Sharrits finished with 27 digs, while senior Elya Karsner (Frankfort, Ky.) and Adleta added another 12 each.

In the first set, the Zips came out firing. The offense clicked well, going on an early four- point run, holding an 7-2 lead over Xavier and forcing them to call their first timeout. After a kill by Weigand to increase the score to 8-2, the tide began to turn in favor of Xavier.

The host Musketeers began to chip away at the Zips' lead, going on multiple runs and eventually tying the game at 16. From there, both teams did a great job of siding out almost immediately, pushing the score to 22 a-piece. The momentum continued to swing in favor of the Musketeers, who went on to take the set, 25-23.

The second set was a tale of two halves. Both teams began the set point-for-point, which included 8 ties and 4 lead changes, bringing the score to 11-11. With the game tied up, the Zips' defense struggled to hold the Musketeers' offense in check, as an eventual seven-point run propelled Xavier to take the set, 25-15.

Akron, however, would not go out without a fight. The Zips began the third set up 6-0, thanks to a kill by Richardson, four errors by the opposing Musketeers, and an ace by Shelby Fulmer (Perrysburg, Ohio).

The Zips were able to hold steady for the duration of the set, holding Xavier to a negative hitting percentage (-.029) while hitting .250 as Weigand greatly distributed the ball to her hitters, with seven different Zips finishing the set with at least one kill. Akron went on to win the set, 25-18.

The resilient Zips continued to play solid volleyball in the fourth set. They found themselves down 10-4 early, but Akron never counted itself out. The Zips stayed solid and slowly chipped away at the deficit, until eventually tying the game at 16. A block by Megan Kelly (Lakewood, Ill.) and Fulmer put them ahead, 17-16.

Xavier responded well, scoring five of six points, and retaking the lead, 22-19. Two consecutive errors and a big solo block by Richardson tied the game at 22. The two teams would trade each of the next six points, knotting the game up at 25. From there, a service error, followed by an attack error on the Musketeers behalf propelled the Zips to win the set and force a fifth and final set.

The Zips, now carrying all the momentum, were determined to finish the match with a win. After having lost the first two points of the final set, two consecutive kills by Richardson led to a four-point run, and Akron re-taking the lead, 4-2.

The set, much like the rest of the match, saw each team respond well, as Xavier kept up with the Zips, eventually tying the game at 6. A solo block by Weigand, followed by an attack error by Xavier gave Akron the lead, 8-6.

With the match coming down to the wire, Xavier called their first time out with Akron leading, 9-7. The Zips continued to dominate out of the timeout, winning four of the next six points, leaving them two points away from claiming victory (13-9).

The Musketeers, on the brink of defeat, were able to regain their composure and tie the game at 13, forcing Akron to call both of its timeouts in that span. Out of the timeout, a well-set ball by Weigand lead to a Richardson kill and put the Zips one point away from claiming victory. The final point of the match consisted of a good rally, however, an attack error by Xavier finished the amazing comeback by the Zips.

"We put together a combination of technical and tactical execution tonight against a very good Xavier team. We sustained a high level of play for long stretches. We were able to chip away when we were down in the fourth set to gain some momentum that carried over into the fifth. Overall, it was a solid team effort that shows what we're capable of being this season" said coach Tom Hanna on the win.

The Zips are back in action Saturday, Sept. 7 as they take on Wright State at 2 p.m.