MATCH STATS
- (RV) Wichita State def. Connecticut 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-20)
- (RV) Wichita State improves to 10-3 (2-0 AAC); Connecticut drops to 8-6 (1-1 AAC)
- Storrs, Connecticut (AAC Conference Match)
- Attendance: 371
- Box Score
Storrs, Connecticut – Wichita State continued its strong start to their AAC career with a win on the road about as far as they will have to travel against Connecticut.
Wichita State’s Abbie Lehman took control of the match from the first serve, posting 17 kills in just three sets of action. Even more impressively was her efficiency as she recorded no errors on 22 swings – good for a .773 hitting percentage. With 31 kills and 12 blocks now over the week, Lehman put herself in strong position to receive some type of weekly award from the AAC.
Although none of the sets were far apart, Wichita State did show strong offense in all three as they hit .270, .321 and .382 respectively compared to .243, .179 and .175 for Connecticut in the sets. Kayla Williams kept the Huskies tightly in the match with 13 kills and eight digs but couldn’t overcome the strong play of Lehman and Emily Hiebert, who not only notched 31 assists but had an incredible nine kills for a setter.
Beyond the Shockers’ attack, serving made a big difference in the match as Wichita State totaled seven aces to just one for Connecticut. Wichita State also won in digs (40-36) and dominated in blocking (8-2).
Wichita State will now look forward to week two of their inaugural American Athletic Conference season as they take on two Florida schools (USF and UCF) in their conference home openers. Connecticut on the other hand looks to regroup as they will face Houston and Tulane on the road next week.
PRESS RELEASES:
STORRS, Conn. – No. 24 Wichita State used dominating performances from seniors Abbie Lehman and Emily Hiebertto defeat UConn, 3-0. The Shockers won by scores of 25-21, 25-23 and 25-20.
Lehman had 17 kills on 22 swings with no errors and hit .773. She also added four blocks. Hiebert had nine kills, 31 assists, a dig and an ace, while hitting .615. Giorgia Civita had a match-high 19 digs.
SET 1:
• The Shockers pulled away late for a 25-21 win in the first set
• Back-to-back service aces from Alex Koon gave WSU an early 3-1 lead
• Kills from Brown, Raudsepp and Hiebert helped push the lead to 7-2
• The Huskies fought back with a 7-2 run to tie it at nine
• WSU responded with a 4-0 run, which included kills from Lehman and Raudsepp, a Lehman block and a Hiebert ace for a 13-9 lead
• UConn again answered to tie it at 15
• Three-straight WSU points put the Shockers up 20-17
• The Shockers reached set point at 24-21 on a kill from Raudsepp and won 25-21 on a kill from Hiebert
• Hiebert led the Shockers with five kills in the set, while Civita had seven digs
SET 2:
• WSU won a back and forth second set 25-23
• UConn took a quick 5-2 lead in the second set and pushed it to 7-3 after a Shocker error
• A Raudsepp service ace tied it at eight and a kill from Lehman gave WSU a 13-11 lead
• A Husky error gave WSU a 14-11 lead, but UConn came back to tie it at 17
• The two teams traded points until kills from Lehman and Raudsepp gave WSU a 23-21 lead
• The Huskies answered with two kills to tie it at 23, but two errors gave WSU the 25-23 win
SET 3:
• The Shockers hit .382 on the way to a 25-20 win in the third set
• A Lehman kill gave WSU a 5-3 lead in the third set
• After a block from Brown and Wright and a Husky hitting error, UConn used a timeout with the Shockers up 11-8
• Kills from Brown and Hiebert pushed the Shocker lead to 20-15
• Lehman’s kill gave WSU the 25-20 win
NEXT MATCH:
• The Shockers are next in action on Fri., Sept. 29 when they host USF at 7 p.m. inside Charles Koch Arena
Leave a Reply