Rio Grande Sports Information
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio - The University of Rio Grande women's volleyball team survived a slow start to the day before going on to post a pair of 3-1 wins over rival Shawnee State University and Cumberland (Tenn.) University, Saturday afternoon, in a tri-match at Frank and Janis Waller Gymnasium.
The RedStorm remained perfect in River States Conference play with a 22-25, 27-25, 25-17, 25-14 victory over Shawnee State before posting a 25-13, 25-21, 20-25, 25-12 non-conference triumph over Cumberland, which was among the schools receiving votes in the latest NAIA Top 25 coaches' poll.
Rio Grande, which ran its winning streak to seven straight with the two victories, improved to 14-6 overall and 4-0 in the RSC.
Shawnee State fell to 12-5 and 2-1 in the RSC with the loss - its second in as many meetings with the RedStorm this season, while Cumberland dropped to 16-7.
The Phoenix defeated the host Bears later in the day to close out the triangular.
After dropping the opening set against Shawnee State, Rio Grande avoided a major deficit by pushing aside a set point chance for SSU in the second stanza and scoring the final three points - on a kill by redshirt freshman Taylor Bartrum (Cherry Hill, KY) and two attack errors by the Bears - to win the stanza.
An 11-1 run in set three helped the RedStorm take the match lead and 9-3 spurt to finish off set four gave Rio the win.
Junior Kelli Stewart (Waverly, OH) had 16 kills and Bartrum finished with 12 of her own to lead the winning effort, while senior Elle McLoughlin (Zanesville, OH) had 41 assists. Stewart also had a team-high three service aces and Bartrum also recorded 16 digs.
Junior Jenna Harrison (Gallipolis, OH) had 27 digs in the victory and junior Averie Bruce (Baltimore, OH) finished with three solo blocks and two block assists.
Bree Hicks led SSU with 10 kills, while Reagan Lewis and Makaela Lovely had 14 and 10 assists, respectively.
Meagan Steele had 22 digs for the Bears and Katelynn Boerger was credited with two solo blocks and a block assist.
In the second match of the day against Cumberland, Rio Grande tallied 53 kills and just 16 errors in 138 attacks for a .268 swing percentage.
Extended scoring runs were the story of the day for head coach Billina Donaldson's squad in the win.
A 7-1 spurt in the opening set helped open up a commanding 20-11 advantage, while a 7-0 run in set two erased a 12-8 deficit and gave Rio a lead it wouldn't relinquish en route to a commanding match lead.
The Phoenix parlayed a 6-0 run of their own to take a 19-14 lead and eventually get a win in the third stanza, but the RedStorm roared to life again in set four with a 15-2 run that snapped a 6-6 deadlock and finish things off once and for all.
Bruce and freshman Gracie Perkins (Wheelersburg, OH) had 12 kills each in the win, while Bartrum and Stewart tallied 11 kills apiece. Stewart and Bartrum also had 15 and 10 digs, respectively, and Perkins had three solo blocks and one block assist.
McLoughlin finished with 41 assists, five service aces and four solo blocks, while Harrison had 25 digs.
Lila Cade had 11 kills to lead Cumberland, while Carlee Rogers had 18 assists and 12 digs and Emma Carter had 16 assists of her own.
Morgan Snead led the Phoenix with 21 digs and Hailey Jones had two solo blocks and four block assists.
Rio Grande returns to action on Monday night when it hits the road for another non-conference affair at Wilberforce University.
First serve is set for 6 p.m.
