Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) volleyball team battled from four Jacksonville match points in the fifth set to pick up its second Atlantic Sun Conference victory of the season in a 3-2 win against the Dolphins Saturday in the Winfield Dunn Center.
Austin Peay (9-8, 2-2 ASUN) and Jacksonville (3-12, 0-4 ASUN) went back and forth in the first set, featuring 10 ties and five lead changes.
After Jacksonville claimed the first two points of the set, Austin Peay State University went on a 7-2 run, giving it a 7-4 lead. Jacksonville responded by scoring the next five points, making its lead 9-7.
The two teams were neck-and-neck for the remainder of the set, and Austin Peay State University scored three straight points to cut its deficit to one, forcing a Jacksonville timeout. Jacksonville scored after the timeout, and Austin Peay State University went a 4-1 run to take the lead 24-23 and force another Dolphins’ timeout. A block by Anna Rita and Mikayla Powell won the set 25-23.
The second set began with a point for the Governors; however, the Dolphins gained momentum, went on a 9-4 run, and led the set the rest of the way, winning 25-20 to tie the match 1-1.
Austin Peay State University scored the first five points in the third set. Jacksonville trimmed its deficit to as few as two points at 15-17, but the APSU Govs won the set wire-to-wire, 25-21.
The fourth set saw 11 ties and two lead changes. The Dolphins went on a 8-3 run to begin the frame, and APSU responded with a 6-1 scoring streak to tie it 9-9. The set went back-and-forth and the Govs managed to force a 24-24 tie, forcing a Dolphins timeout. Jacksonville scored twice after the timeout and won the set 26-24.
The fifth set had 11 ties and five lead changes. The APSU Govs scored six of the first nine points before Jacksonville went on a 4-1 run, tying the set 7-7. The Governors pushed past Jacksonville’s four match points to win an extended fifth set, 19-17, with a kill from Mikayla Powell.
Anna Rita’s career-high eight blocks are tied for the fourth most in a five-set match in program history. Mikayla Powell led the team with 14 kills, and Karli Graham led with a .769 hitting percentage – the second-best mark in program history.
APSU’s 115 points are tied for the second most in program history, trailing only 119 points in a five-set match against Little Rock on August 31st, 2012. The team also had a total of 15 blocks, which is tied for the 11th most in a match in program history.
Next Up For APSU Volleyball
The Austin Peay State University volleyball team remains at home for their next match against Bellarmine on October 6th, at 6:00pm in the Dunn Center.
