Volleyball Opens SEMO Invite with Pair of Wins

Friday, September 10

Cape Girardeau, MO

1:30 PM

Kansas City

6-1

Arkansas State

4-3

Arkansas State

Kansas City

Volleyball Opens SEMO Invite with Pair of Wins

9/10/2021 9:48:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box vs. Arkansas State Box vs. Marshall

The Roos earned a five-set victory over Arkansas State before sweeping past Marshall

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Kansas City Volleyball extended its winning streak to seven-straight this afternoon, defeating Arkansas State in five sets and sweeping Marshall on the first day of the SEMO Invitational. The Roos' defense shone on the day, notching 156 digs and 13 blocks.

KEY MOMENTS VS. ARKANSAS STATE

S1 | The Roos fell behind early in the first set, but came storming back on a four-point run to take a 14-12 lead behind kills from Odyssey Warren and Alli Schomers
S1 | After the Red Wolves held off two set points, De'Janae Arnold ended the set with her sixth kill.
S2 | The Roos jumped out to a five-point lead early in the set following a kill by Melanie Brecka.
S2 | With the Roos leading 13-12, Arkansas State strung together a 10-point run to take command of the set.
S3 | With the score tied 5-5, the Roos strung together two kills from Arnold, an ace by Leah Green and two errors by ASU to take a five-point lead.
S3 | A kill by Brecka made Kansas City the first to 15, followed by an error from the Red Wolves to give the Roos a 16-10 lead.
S3 | Back-to-back kills by Raina Smith and Warren gave the Roos the third set and a 2-1 lead.
S4 | After both teams traded points to begin the set, Arkansas State won four-straight to force a KC timeout with the score at 10-7 in favor of ASU.
S4 | The Roos battled to tie the set up at 23-23, but Arkansas State took the last two points to force a fifth set.
S5 | The Red Wolves jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the deciding set, but the Roos took four of the next five points to tie it up at 5-5.
S5 | With the score tied 8-8, a kill by Brecka, an error by ASU and an ace by Kennedy Schritenthal forced an Arkansas State timeout.
S5 | On KC's second match point, Warren came through with her 10th kill of the day to give the Roos the victory.

STATS TO NOTE VS. ARKANSAS STATE

The Roos' back line, paced by 19 digs each from Schomers and Maddie Renn, dug up a season-high 86 Red Wolves attacks.
Schomers also dished 52 assists for a double-double. She was joined by a 13-kill, 15-dig double-double by Brecka.
Carly Gillen posted five block assists and one solo block to pace the Roos' 10 total blocks.
Arnold finished with 16 kills on .483 hitting, her fourth match of the year with above-.400 hitting.

KEY MOMENTS VS. MARSHALL

S1 | The teams traded points to begin the match, but an ace from Brecka gave the Roos a 15-13 advantage.
S1 | A block by Gillen and Brecka capped a three-point run for the Roos and gave them a lead that would not be relinquished for the rest of the set.
S2 | The Thundering Herd gained an early 4-1 advantage in the second set, but the Roos took five of the next six points to jump in front by a point.
S2 | With the set tied 16-16, two kills by Smith and two errors by Marshall put Kansas City in front and forced a Thundering Herd timeout.
S2 | With Marshall threatening a comeback, Schomers went to Warren for the final two kills of the set.
S3 | An ace by Brecka capped a 5-1 run to begin the third set and gave the Roos an early advantage.
S3 | Marshall came thundering back to take a four-point lead, but a kill by Brecka and two-straight aces from Schomers brought the Roos within one.
S3 | Facing two set points, the Roos went to Brecka for four kills in the final six points to earn the sweep.

STATS TO NOTE VS. MARSHALL

Smith led the Roos' attack, finishing with 12 kills on 32 attacks. Warren was the only other Roo in double digits with 10 kills.
The Roos' defense out-dug the Thundering Herd 70-56, led by 22 digs by Renn.
Kansas City finished with nine service aces, led by four from Brecka.

COACH CHRISTI POSEY, QUOTED

"I certainly appreciate the wins, both Arkansas State and Marshall are physical and well-coached. We managed through some ugly today and we were solid at end game in both matches."
"Deja was very good offensively, and Odyssey and Raina were workhorses. Alli's presence on the court gives our hitters a lot of confidence."
"I'm probably most proud of how we're defending right now. Eighty-six digs and 10 blocks against Arkansas State and then 70 digs versus Marshall was terrific. We'll certainly have to be good in all phases against a hot Memphis team tomorrow."

UP NEXT

The Roos face Memphis at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow to cap off the SEMO Invite. The Tigers faced their first setback of the year this evening, dropping a 3-2 decision to SEMO.