KEARNEY, NE – The University of Mary opened play at the UNK Fall Classic today with matches against host school, University of Nebraska – Kearney and New Mexico Highlands. The Marauders bounced back after a tough tournament opening loss against #8 UNK to post a dominant four set victory over Nebraska Highlands.
Sydney Murphy continued to do what she does best, recording a double-double in both games to make it six straight on the season.
Anna Nietfeld and
Morgan Schnabel each added a double-double on the day to give them each three this season.
UMary 0 UNK 3
The Marauders had their hands full facing one of the best teams in the nation in eighth ranked Nebraska – Kearney. The Marauders had their chances to score, recording more attack attempts than their opponents but the stout defense of the Lopers refused to relinquish points. UNK was efficient on the offense as well, recording a team hitting percentage of .330. With the loss the Marauders fall to 0-5 and Nebraska – Kearney improves to 6-0.
PIVOT POINT
UMary kept things competitive in the first set, keeping things even through the first half of the set but a 10-3 run by the Lopers wrapped up a set one win. With momentum on their side they were able to claim the next two sets and the match.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Sydney Murphy recorded 20 assists, 12 digs, and an ace on the game
Natalia Cruz set a game high in digs with 18
Morgan Schnabel led the team with eight kills to go along with her 11 digs
Katja Berge was second on the team in kills with six
STAT OF THE GAME
For the fifth straight game,
Sydney Murphy has recorded a double-double. Murphy posted a team high of 20 assists to go along with her 12 digs.
SCOREBOARD
Set one: UNK 25-16
Set two: UNK 25-10
Set three: UNK 25-13
UMary 3 New Mexico Highlands 1
The Marauders got their groove back against New Mexico Highlands, taking down the Cowboys in four sets.
Sydney Murphy,
Anna Nietfeld, and
Morgan Schnabel all posted big double-doubles on the game as UMary dominated in every statistical category. UMary won the match as a team with six different Marauders scoring six or more points. The Marauders were able to outscore their opponent 71-33 over the four sets, including holding 59-26 advantage in kills. With the win, the Marauders improve to 1-5 on the season and NM Highlands falls to 1-5.
PIVOT POINT
The Marauders took control early, winning the first set 25-13. New Mexico Highlands was able to narrowly take the second set 25-22. The third set started out competitive but the Marauders were able to put their foot on the gas and close out the set on a 10-2 run to take a 2-1 lead. With momentum on the Marauders side they did not let off the gas, taking the fourth set and the match.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Sydney Murphy recorded her sixth straight double-double with a 47 assist, 12 digs performance. She added five kills to her stat line with a .200 hitting percentage.
Anna Nietfeld posted a double-double with 11 kills and 13 digs with a hitting percentage of .231
Morgan Schnabel posted a double-double with 21 kills and 13 digs with a hitting percentage of .260
Katja Berge recorded nine kills and ten digs
Julianna Hughes posted eight kills with an astounding .615 hitting percentage
Natalia Cruz posted a career high of five aces to go with her nine digs
STAT OF THE GAME
The Marauders were on with their serves tonight. UMary recorded an impressive nine aces during the match.
Natalia Cruz accounted for most of them, recording a career high of five aces.
SCOREBOARD
Set one: UMary 25-13
Set two: NM Highlands 25-22
Set three: UMary 25-13
Set four: UMary 25-18
The Marauders will look to continue their winning ways as they head into day two of the UNK classic. UMary will battle Arkansas Tech at 10 AM followed by #17 Rockhurst at 2 PM.
#Marauders#
