SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- In a match that John Brown (9-14, 3-3 SAC) had control of the entire time, senior Erin McIlroy's 12 kills powered the Golden Eagles to a 3-0 (25-13, 25-10, 25-14) straight-sets victory over Mid-America Christian (Okla.) this morning at Bill George Arena.
McIlroy's 12 spikes turned out to be a match-high as teammate Audrey Dearien joined her as the only two players in the match to finish with double-digit kills. The sophomore pitched in with 10 attacks to accompany her season-high five service aces, leading the Golden Eagles to matching its highest output in service aces (11) this season.
John Brown out-blocked the visitors, 5.0-2.0, paced by McIlroy's three rejections. Sophomore Libby Blasingame notched a pair of blocks.
The Golden Eagle attackers were very sharp today as JBU notched its second-highest attacking percentage of the season, turning in a .365 percent effort, led by a .688 percent effort from McIlroy.
Dearien kicked off the first set by netting three of her five aces early on, vaulting the Golden Eagles to a 6-1 lead. The Lady Evangels (3-15, 0-6 SAC) responded quickly, however, throwing together a 5-2 run, closing the gap to a lone point. Junior Vanessa Uhrhahn's spike started a 7-0 run that featured impressive serving from freshman Shayna Daniels, as her three service aces keyed the pull-away run. Sporting a 10-point lead, 20-10, McIlroy took over in the latter parts of the set, notching three kills that was capped off with a rejected attack attempt by Uhrhahn and Blasingame, as JBU posted a quick 25-13 victory.
In a reversal of fortunes, MACU forced three ties to begin the second game, even taking the lead at 9-5. Despite facing a four-point deficit, the Golden Eagles rattled off one of the more memorable rallies of late, finishing game two off on a resounding 20-1 run to take the second game, 20-10. McIlroy's six spikes led John Brown in the set while Dearien netted five of her kills in the second game.
The third set was all Golden Eagles again. John Brown took advantage of great serving from senior Kailey Bain and Dearien to start set three on a 17-1 run where the Lady Evangels' only point was a result of a Golden Eagle service error. Bain chipped in with a service ace during the rally while Dearien notched her final two aces of the morning. Up big, MACU took advantage, scoring the next six points, but JBU closed out the set, and the match, by scoring eight of the next 15 points to win 25-14.
Bain dished out a match-high 18 assists. Daniels also landed double-digit helpers, finishing with 15 to accompany her three aces and four digs.
The Golden Eagles will receive little time off after the victory, returning to the court on Monday (Oct. 7) to face Southwestern Christian (Okla.) in the Eagles' first venture to Bill George Arena as a member of the Sooner Athletic Conference. The match is scheduled for a 6:00 p.m. start time.
