PT. LOOKOUT, Mo. -- The Golden Eagles held the host Bobcat offense quiet in three of the four sets, and the John Brown University volleyball team hit over .250 in its three set wins to take a 3-1 victory (25-16, 23-25, 25-21, 25-17) over College of the Ozarks (Mo.) on Tuesday night (Nov. 1) inside Keeter Gymnasium.
Junior Savanna Riney recorded 17 kills, and 20 digs, while senior Ellie Lampton chipped in with 13 to lead the Golden Eagles (21-6) offensively. Sophomores Taylor Golmen (11 kills) and Lilly Ruston paced JBU at the net, each recording four blocks, and senior Jillian Blackman held down the backcourt with 28 digs. Senior Lauren Cloud led John Brown with 28 assists, with senior Morgan Fincham producing 17 and 11 digs.
John Brown got off to a quick lead in the first, scoring seven of the first 10 points, and the lead would hold until the visitors used four consecutive Riney kills to open a 16-8 advantage. The lead ballooned to 10, 20-10, and a Golmen-Ruston block setup Golmen's kill to close out the first period.
The Bobcats (18-14) returned the favor in the second, racing out to an 8-4 advantage. After trading some points, junior Delaney Barnes produced a pair of terminations, and alongside two Bobcat errors, allowed John Brown to take an 11-10 lead. After the lead expanded to 13-12, the hosts recorded six of the next points to retake an 18-16 and held the lead until a 19-19 tie. Scoring four of the next five, the Bobcats held onto the second to tie the match at one apiece despite a pair of Lampton kills and a Cloud ace down the stretch.
The third provided seven ties and six lead changes, as the teams were never separated by more than four points. With the teams separated by just two, 21-19, a Bobcat service error preceded a Lampton kill that widened the gap to four. Ozarks responded with consecutive kills, but a Golmen kill in the middle, followed by a Golmen-Riney stuff rejection at the net ended the Bobcat effort at a comeback.
Facing a season sweep to the Golden Eagles, the host Bobcats held the lead for the majority of the earlygoings of the fourth until a 10-9 score. Then, an ensuing 7-2 John Brown rally fueled by three-straight Lampton kills forced a 16-12 JBU advantage. After Ozarks closed to within two, 16-14, the Golden Eagles ended the match on a 9-3 rally, punctuated by two more Lampton terminations, including match point.
The Golden Eagles hit .282 (61-13-170) on the night, and limited College of the Ozarks to a .156 (48-20-180) effort on its home floor.
One of the few Bobcat bright spots was Bri Linehan's attacking performance, as the leading CofO hitter terminated 17 on 43 kills (.395), going errorless on the night. Morgan Austin recorded 34 assists and Mica Chadwell ended the evening with a game-high 35 scoops in the back row.
The Golden Eagles now close out Sooner Athletic play with consecutive matchups inside Bill George Arena, beginning on Friday night (Nov. 4) when it hosts No. 23 Texas Welseyan at 7 p.m. as JBU celebrates Senior Night. The following afternoon, John Brown plays host to No. 8 and undefeated Southwestern A.G. (Texas) in a 1 p.m. matinee tussle. Both matches will be broadcast live on the SAC Sports Network.
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