Southern Illinois University
5-16,0-8MVC
Missouri State University
14-6,5-3MVC
Salukis fall to Bears in four sets
10/16/2021 | 7:33:00 | Women's Volleyball
CARBONDALE, Ill. — The Southern Illinois volleyball team fell in four sets to Missouri State (25-21, 21-25, 18-25, 19-25) Saturday inside Davies Gym.
The Salukis charged out of the gate to take the opening set, 25-21, but the Bears rallied to win each of the next three to seal the victory. Missouri State's block proved to be a difference maker in its win, as they tallied 10 blocks and outhit the Salukis, .235-to-.176.
SIU nearly had four different hitters reach double figures in kills in the loss. Margherita Giani hit .562 with 10 kills on just 16 swings while Tatum Tornatta put down 10 kills of her own. Nataly Garcia notched her eighth kill-dig double-double of the season with 11 kills and 13 digs. Nsia Gittens added nine kills despite having to swing at more than her fair share of bump sets when the Salukis were out of system.
Defensively, Katy Kluge led the way with 19 digs. Garcia added 13 while MacKenzie Houser chipped in nine. Anna Jaworski tallied 39 assists, eight digs and two aces. Jaworski was one of three Salukis to record multiple aces against the Bears, as she was joined by Garcia (2) and Giani (2).
Missouri State used three-straight points to break a 5-all tie in the first set. The Bears lead was 12-10 before Ryan Rednour served five-straight points to give SIU a three-point advantage. From there, the Salukis extended their lead to 18-14 with back-to-back blocks from Margherita Giani. The Bears closed the gap, as they used a 3-1 run to get to within one, 22-21. But with Rednour back at the service line, SIU scored three-straight points to seal the set one win.
Missouri State scored four of the first five points in the second set and its lead ballooned to five before Southern cut its deficit down to two, 9-7 on an ace by Garcia. The Bears scored four of the next five points to push its advantage back to five and they continued to pour it on from there, as they increased their lead to seven, 22-15 before SIU scored four-straight points to get to within three. The Salukis again got to within three on two occasions, but that was as close as they could get.
The two sides traded the first eight points of the third set before Southern used four-straight points to gain separation. The Bears countered with six-straight points, of which three came off of blocks. The Salukis rallied to tie the frame at 12-all but the Bears answered with eight of the next nine points to build a seven-point advantage and cruised to the win from there.
In a fourth set that featured nine ties and five lead changes, Southern took a narrow 15-14 lead at the media timeout. The Bears scored nine of the next 12 points to build a 23-17 lead. Southern got to within four but could get no closer as the Bears took the fourth set to take the match.
The Salukis are back in action on Friday, Oct. 23 when they travel to Chicago, Ill. to take on the Loyola Ramblers. First serve is set for 6 p.m.
