Rio women drop Crimson Pride in straight sets

Rio Grande Sports Information
     COLUMBUS, Ind. - The University of Rio Grande rallied after coughing up a set one lead, then trailed only once in set two and never trailed in set three en route to a 26-24, 25-21, 25-23 win over Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus, Friday night, in River States Conference women's volleyball action at the CERA Sports Park and Campground.
     The RedStorm, which won for just the second time in their last six outings, improved to 12-7 overall and 6-4 in league play with the victory.
     IUPUC, which is in its first season as a member of the RSC, slipped to 5-8 overall and 2-7 in the conference as a result of the loss.
     The Crimson Pride rallied from a 22-17 deficit in the opening stanza and fought off four straight set points to knot the score at 24-all, but an attack error and a subsequent kill by Rio freshman Averie Bruce (Baltimore, OH) allowed the RedStorm to rebound and take the early match lead.
     IUPUC shook off an early deficit in the second set and put together three straight winners to grab a brief 11-10 advantage, but the RedStorm countered with four consecutive points to grab a lead it would never relinquish.
     Set three saw Rio Grande race to a 4-1 win before the hosts reeled off a trio of consecutive winners to knot the score, but the RedStorm ran off five straight winners of their own and never looked back.
     Rio Grande was credited with 50 kills and 20 errors in 112 total attacks for a .268 swing percentage.
     Senior Amanda Rarick (Canal Winchester, OH) had a match-high 12 kills in the win, while junior Jordan Brooks (Reynoldsburg, OH) finished with 10 kills.
     Junior Avery Huntzinger (Canal Winchester, OH) tallied 27 assists for the RedStorm, while junior Sofia Otero Marrero (Vega Baja, Puerto Rico) had 15 assists of her own to go along with a pair of service aces.
     Junior Ashton Webb (Gallipolis, OH) had 10 digs in the victory.
     IUPUC had a .158 attack percentage with 30 kills and 14 errors in 101 swings.
     Abigail Watson tied for match-high honors with 12 kills to pace the hosts, while Addison Lemon had 21 assists and Cora Baker had 10 digs.
     Rio Grande is scheduled to return to action next Friday at Indiana University Southeast.
     First serve is set for 7 p.m.