NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Wichita State Shocker Volleyball team started the 2017 season on the right foot, racing out to three quick wins at the LUV Invitational hosted by Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Shockers opened the invitational with a 3-0 sweep over host Lipscomb.

Wichita State won a close first game, 28-26, before pulling away for a dominating win in game two, 25-13. They proceeded to close out the match with a tight 27-25 game-three win.

Junior Tabitha Brown led the Shockers with 11 kills. Senior Mikaela Raudsepp finished with 10 and senior Abbie Lehman added nine.

Senior Emily Hiebert picked up a career-high eight blocks to lead the team. Lehman and redshirt freshman Emma Wright each added six.

The Shocker were even more dominant in their second match, dispatching of East Tennessee State in three comfortable games by scores of 25-17, 25-16, and 25-21.

Brown led the Shockers in kills once again, this time tallying 15.

Redshirt freshman Giorgia Civita of Milan, Italy, finished with a team and career-high 22 digs.

Hiebert wracked up a team high 32 assists on top of 14 digs and five kills.

As a team, Wichita State edged out East Tennessee State in every category. The Shockers finished with 43 kills to the Bucs’ 38, committed only 10 errors ETSU’s 20, and held a 6-2 advantage in aces.

The final match of the invitational saw the Shockers coast to another 3-0 victory, this time over Belmont University. Wichita State won by scores of 25-20, 25-13, and 25-23 to go undefeated for the weekend.

The Shockers outscored their three opponents 230-174 over the weekend.

Up next, Wichita State will head to Indianapolis for the IUPUI Hampton Invitational. The Shockers will face IUPUI on Friday, September 1, followed by Marquette and Miami (OH) on Saturday.