Bears Win On The Road Against Kennesaw State, Advance To 6-1

Tuesday, September 10

Kennesaw, Ga.

6:30 p.m.

Mercer University

6-1,0-0SoCon

Kennesaw State

2-5,0-0CUSA

Mercer

Kennesaw St.

Bears Win On The Road Against Kennesaw State, Advance To 6-1

9/10/2024 5:34:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Kaylin Flukey, kaylin.flukey@live.mercer.edu

KENNESAW - The Mercer volleyball team secured a big win against Kennesaw State, advancing their record to 6-1. Both squads battled all three sets exchanging big swings and plays but Mercer was able to come out on top.

Once again, senior Skye Ekes led the offense with 16 kills and Gia Padilla was right behind her recording a double-double with 12 kills and 15 digs on the night. Senior setter Brooke Phillips posted impressive numbers throughout the match with eight kills, 37 assists, three aces and nine digs.

The Bears return to Hawkins Arena this weekend where they will host Presbyterian, Elon and Southern Mississippi for the MU Invitational. Mercer will play on Friday, Sept. 13 at 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. and again on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 1:00 p.m. to close out the weekend.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
KILLS	Skye Ekes (16), Gia Padilla (12), Skyler Bumpers (8)
ASSISTS	Brooke Phillips (37), MeMe Davis (5), Gia Padilla (4), Abbey Havrilla (4)
DIGS	Gia Padilla (15), MeMe Davis (12), Brooke Phillips (9)
BLOCKS	Lou Johnson (5), Skye Ekes (3), Sophia Henry (1), Brooke Phillips (1)
SERVICE ACES	Brooke Phillips (3), MeMe Davis (3), Skye Ekes (1), Abbey Havrilla (1), Gia Padilla (1)

MATCH REPLAY
SET 1 I 25-23	The Bears fell behind early in the set but quickly rallied back to tie the set 8-8. The comeback gave Mercer the momentum they needed to maintain the lead for the rest of the set defeating the Owls 25-23.
SET 2 I 29-27	The second set was the closest one out of the four with multiple lead changes and kills exchanged on both sides of the net. Mercer out-hit Kennesaw State 21 kills to 12 with Skye Ekes leading both teams tallying in six kills. The last 17 points were bounced back and forth but Skyler Bumpers was able to put away a kill for the 29th set-point.
SET 3 I 19-25	Mercer remained behind Kennesaw State during the majority of the match, catching back up to the Owls a few different times but the Bears were not able to offset the Owls completely to force the match to go to four sets.
SET 4 I 25-19	The Bears came out hot from the jump getting up on the Owls 8-3 and holding the lead for the rest of the set. Ekes' three kills combined with a handful of service aces from the Bears was enough to secure the win over the Owls on their home court.

UP NEXT
The Bears return to Hawkins Arena this weekend where they will host Presbyterian, Elon and Southern Mississippi for the MU Invitational. Mercer will play on Friday, Sept. 13 at 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. and again on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 1:00 p.m. to close out the weekend. All Mercer games will be streamed on ESPN+.

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