APSU Sports Information
Clarksville, TN – Austin Peay State University’s (APSU) volleyball team put forth a workmanlike effort en route to a three-set Ohio Valley Conference sweep (26-24, 25-20, 25-20) of UT Martin, Friday night, at the Winfield Dunn Center.
Austin Peay (21-3, 10-1 OVC) closed both the first and second sets with 4-0 runs to claim wins.
The Govs trailed 24-22 in the first set before scoring four straight to win in overtime. In the second, the 4-0 burst came just in time as UT Martin closed within a point, 21-20, before the late run sealed a 2-0 start.
Austin Peay then won the third set wire-to-wire, fending off a 8-1 UTM run and scoring six of the final nine points to win the match.
UT Martin (12-13, 5-6 OVC) had an impressive night at the net, posting 11 blocks.
The Skyhawks scored seven of those stops in the second set, but the Govs posted a match-best 15 kills in the frame to negate the effort and extend their lead to 2-0.
Brooke Moore led Austin Peay with 12 kills while Kaylee Taff added nine kills and a block.
UT Martin finished with just 38 kills, Jamie Rys leading the attack with eight kills. Gintare Mackeviciute had six kills and six blocks.
Austin Peay closes out the home portion of its regular-season slate with a 1:00pm, Saturday contest against Southeast Missouri.
Set-By-Set
SET 1, Govs Win 26-24
Austin Peay built an early 6-3 lead thanks to a 4-0 run that included a pair of kills by Kaylee Taff. The Govs would extend the lead to five points but could not build a larger advantage with the teams trading points for an extended period.
UT Martin would rally late with six straight points as part of an 8-1 run that gave the Skyhawks a 22-20 lead. UTM would get to set point on a Justin Walker kill, 24-22, but would not score again.
Kristen Stucker posted a kill to start a set-ending 4-0 run to claim the win.
SET 2, Govs Win 25-20
After early back-and-forth action, Austin Peay and UT Martin traded big runs over the final two-thirds of the set. UTM began the exchange with a 6-2 run to take a 12-10 lead. The Govs returned the favor with a 9-4 run to take a 19-16 lead.
The Skyhawks then scored three straight to close within a point at 21-20 only to see the Govs respond with a 4-0 set-ending run.
SET 3, Govs Win 25-20
Austin Peay tried to end any excitement early in the third, racing out to a 12-5 lead. But UT Martin used an 8-1 run to nearly reel the Govs back in, closing to within a point at 18-17.
A Kaylee Taff kill ended the UTM run and started a 7-3 Austin Peay run that clinched the match.
APSU Govs, Notably
Unblemished At Home
The Governors remained unbeaten at the Dunn Center this season, improving to 9-0. Austin Peay has won its last 12 matches at home dating back to last season’s OVC Tournament sweep.
Turner’s Turn
In her first extended action this season, Haley Turner played in all three sets against UT Martin as the Govs defensive specialist. She finished with a team-leading and career-best 13 digs and added two service aces to aid the Governors cause.
Stucker Now No. 2
With her 34-assist outing, setter Kristen Stucker moved to No. 2 on Austin Peay career assists list, finishing the night with 4,395 career assists. She moved past Sarah Alisaleh (4,385, 2007-10) and now trails only Annie Glieber (4,885, 1997-00) on the career assists list.
