Clarksville, TN – A career-high 23 kills by Mikayla Powell and season-high 34 assists by Kelsey Mead led the Austin Peay State University (APSU) volleyball team to a four-set victory (25-21, 24-26, 25-21, 26-24) against North Dakota State at Stacheville Challenge, Friday, at the Winfield Dunn Center.
North Dakota State (6-4) tallied the first point of the match, but it was the last time they led in the set. The APSU Govs scored five-straight points to take a 5-1 lead and held a 10-6 advantage following Powell’s fourth kill in the match’s inaugural frame.
Powell’s seven kills and .600 hitting percentage paced APSU to a 25-21 first-set victory, while Janvier Buggs and Mead split setter duties with five and six assists, respectively.
The APSU Govs began the set on a 6-2 run, but the early lead was answered with a 7-2 NDSU to force the first of 11 second-set ties. Back-to-back APSU errors later in the set gave NDSU its largest lead of the frame at 20-18, but it was quickly answered by a 5-2 APSU run to force the Bisons to call timeout. NDSU evened the match after ending the second set with three-straight points.
The Govs posted a match-best .351 hitting percentage in the penultimate set with 16 kills on three errors, leading to the 25-21 victory. Powell led the Govs with seven kills on 11 swings, while Mead added 14 assists.
North Dakota State held momentum throughout much of the fourth set and forced the first set point with a 24-21 lead, but back-to-back Marlayna Bullington errors forced an NDSU timeout. Austin Peay State University then tied the match following Bullington’s third-straight kill and secured the win following a Jaida Clark kill and Kelsey Mead service ace.
The Governors host East Tennessee Friday at 6:30pm before concluding the Stacheville Challenge at 1:30pm, Saturday.
