OKLAHOMA CITY - Late in the second set at Mid-America Christian (Okla.) on Saturday afternoon (Oct. 29), the John Brown University volleyball team sat two points away from taking a two-sets-to-none lead in their final away leage road match of the regular season.
The Golden Eagles (20-6, 14-4 Sooner Athletic), however, were unable to take that stanza, and that changed the momentum of the match in a big way.
MACU (17-12, 11-7) took the set 26-24, and the Golden Eagles were unable to regain their footing in the match, as they fell 3-1 (25-16, 24-26, 25-18, 25-23). JBU did, however, lock up the third seed in the upcoming Sooner Athletic volleyball tournmaent thanks to other results from around the conference.
JBU opened an early 7-4 lead in the first frame, and they led 11-7 when MACU rattled off six straight points to take a 13-11 lead. JBU took a timeout, though, and coming out of the break, the Eagles took control. JBU won 14 of the final 17 points in the set - including eight in a row to turn a 15-14 deficit into a 22-15 lead - to take the opening period 25-16.
MACU started with the lead in the second set, but JBU battled back to tie things at six apiece, and from that point onward, the set remained extremely close. Only once in the remainder of the stanza did either team lead by three points, and after a late block by Lilly Ruston and a kill from Taylor Golmen, JBU led 23-22. MACU won four of the final five points of the set, however, to take the 26-24 win and level the match at a set each.
JBU led 10-9 midway through the third set, but an 8-0 MACU run helped the Evangels pull out to a 25-18 win in the third frame, and in the fourth set, a 6-2 spurt helped MACU build a lead that survived a late surge from the Golden Eagles and the Evangels took the match.
Golmen and Savanna Riney each had 11 kills for JBU, and Ellie Lampton added eight more. Lauren Cloud dished out 23 assists, and Morgan Fincham had 18 helpers in the match, Jillian Blackman notched 22 digs, and Riney also reached double figures in digs with 10 to notch her 16th double-double of the season. Riney and Micah Fouts also each participated in four blocks.
The Golden Eagles will step out of SAC play for the final time on Tuesday night (Nov. 1), when they head to Pt. Lookout, Mo. to take on College of the Ozarks. The match is slated for a 6 p.m. first serve.
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