Shocker volleyball continues momentum with two more wins

The Wichita State volleyball team’s weekend ended with continued success in their Missouri Valley conference play.

The Shockers traveled north Friday to Normal, Illinois, to play the No. 3 Illinois State Redbirds. Going into the match, the Redbirds were ranked No. 1 in kills in the MVC.

The match was a close 3-2 for the Shockers, winning by scores of 23-25, 25-22, 26-24, 19-25 and 17-15.

Junior outside hitter Jody Larson led the team with 19 kills, followed by redshirt freshman Shimen Fayad’s 14 kills. Middle blocker Katie Reilly contributed 11 kills and led the Shockers with a .450 hitting percentage.

The sets against the Redbirds consisted of back and forth leads, ties, errors and kills. After four back and forth sets, the Shockers were able to close out the fifth set 17-15 for the win after tying 10 times.

The Shockers then hit the road once again to meet the No. 8-ranked Indiana State Sycamores on their home court Saturday evening in Terre Haute.

The Shockers swept the Sycamores 25-18, 25-22 and 26-24 with sophomore outside hitter Mikaela Raudsepp leading the team with 13 kills and a .522 hitting percentage.

The first set saw some Shocker errors, resulting in a brief lead by the Sycamores, but the team scored three-straight aces to tie the score and retake the lead.

WSU was able to maintain a comfortable lead throughout the second set but the third set saw  Shockers down four points in the middle. An Indiana State hitting error and consecutive kills by the Shockers gave the team the lead once again. The final set traded points until the Shockers won the set 26-24, thanks to a service ace from Fayad.

The Shockers, now 9-1 in their conference and 18-6 overall, will play Saturday at Missouri State to continue conference play.