WICHITA, Kan. - Missouri Western volleyball (16-4, 7-2 MIAA) capped off the weekend with a dominant sweep over the Newman Jets (3-20, 0-9 MIAA) on Saturday afternoon. MWSU claimed its eighth sweep of the season with set scores of 25-15, 25-12 and 25-17.
The Griffons opened the match strong in the first set with a 6-2 run and didn't let up. They led the Jets by as many as 10, with senior
Shelby Dannegger sealing the set with her first kill in MIAA play this season.
Missouri Western carried its momentum into the second set, leading by as many as 14 to go up 2-0.
Noelle Sutcliffe led the offensive charge with four kills, while
Nessa Johnson tabbed 11 assists.
Set three was the closest of the three, with Newman taking its lone lead of the contest with a block at the opening point. However, Western responded with a 6-0 run, reaching the 20-point mark first with a kill from freshman
Mackenzie Peters.
Lily Kurz capped off the set with her conference-leading 89th block of the season.
MWSU hit .316 as a team and collected a total of 41 kills. Sophomore
Holly Heldt led the Griffs with eight kills, followed by Peters with seven. Johnson contributed a match-leading 32 assists, while libero
Anna Weberg secured five serve aces.
Weberg also shined on defense with 14 digs, and
Emma Salker led the team with three blocks.
The Griffons will return to action on Tuesday for the non-conference finale against William Jewell (7-14, 1-5 MIAA). Action at the Mabee Center in Liberty is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m.