JOPLIN, Mo. – The Northwestern Oklahoma State volleyball team split the final day of the Southern Invite, falling to Missouri S&T, 3-0, in the first game of the day before closing out the tournament with a 3-0 win over Northeastern State.
Game 1
In set one, Missouri S&T grabbed the early advantage, jumping out to a 4-1 lead before Northwestern battled back to even the score at 5-5. The Miners responded with a major run, scoring eight straight points to take control of the set with a 13-5 advantage. Northwestern began working its way back into the set and found momentum midway through the frame.
After trailing 17-10, the Rangers put together their best run of the set, scoring five straight points to pull within two at 17-15.
Kemelly Baez Miecznikoski, Tess de Zanet and
Miah Matthias helped fuel the Northwestern comeback during the stretch. Missouri S&T stopped the run and rebuilt its advantage before closing the set on a 6-1 run to take the opener, 25-17.
Starting set two, Northwestern came out strong in the second set, taking an early 2-1 lead behind a service ace from de Zanet. Missouri S&T quickly answered and built a 6-3 advantage before eventually extending the lead to 9-4. The Rangers responded with three straight points to cut the deficit to 9-7 and stay within striking distance.
Northwestern continued to battle and eventually pulled within one at 12-11. Missouri S&T answered the Rangers' push with four straight points to extend its advantage to 16-11. Northwestern again worked the deficit down to three at 16-13 and later made it 19-15, but the Miners controlled the final stretch. Missouri S&T scored six of the final eight points to take the second set 25-17 and move ahead 2-0 in the match.
The third set opened with Northwestern and Missouri S&T trading points, as the two teams battled to an early 3-3 tie. The Miners then took control with a 7-0 scoring run, which included three service aces, to build a 10-3 advantage. Northwestern stopped the run, but Missouri S&T continued to create separation and eventually extended its lead to 17-5.
The Rangers continued to fight despite the deficit, putting together a three-point run later in the set to cut the score to 19-11. Missouri S&T eventually reached match point with a 24-13 advantage, but Northwestern refused to go away. The Rangers fought off four straight match points, using a kill and service ace from de Zanet along with a block from de Zanet and Miecznikoski to make it 24-17. Missouri S&T ended the late push on the following point, winning the set 25-17 to complete the 3-0 sweep.
Game 2
In the second game, the Rangers and Riverhawks opened the scoring by trading points, with de Zanet striking with two kills to tie the set at 5-5. The opening set continued to go back-and-forth until the Rangers went on a 4-0 stretch to open a 16-11 lead. The Northwestern lead continued to expand late in the set, as the Rangers went on another 4-0 surge to build their lead up to 20-12. After a kill for Northeastern,
Ivanny Blackwood recorded three straight kills to help the Rangers take the first set, 25-13.
The second set started similar to the first, with both teams knotted at 5-5 early on, but the Rangers found themselves in a 12-7 hole after a 5-0 Riverhawk run. Northwestern responded with a 6-0 spark of their own, which started from a kill by
Andrea Djordjevic. Both teams tried to establish momentum midway through the set, but neither team could pull away as Djordjevic, de Zanet, and Miecznikoski racked up kills to keep the Rangers ahead, 18-17. After trading scores, Northwestern closed out the set with four straight points to take the set, 25-23.
Northeastern opened the third set with a 4-0 run, but the Rangers quickly answered with a 4-1 stretch of their own to find themselves down by a point, 5-4. The Rangers started to hammer the Riverhawks, as they recorded four straight kills during an 8-0 run to take a 12-6 advantage and not look back. Northwestern continued to keep the Riverhawks at bay, and slammed the door shut with a 5-0 run to close the game and give the Rangers their first win of the season, 3-0.
The Rangers will be in action on Sept. 1, when they take on McPherson College at 6 p.m. inside Percefull Fieldhouse for the home opener.
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