Eagles Sweep Virginia Wesleyan, F&M to Close Asics Invitational

HUNTINGDON, Pa.- The #4 Juniata women's volleyball team picked up a pair of victories to close out the ASICS Invitational defeating Virginia Wesleyan 3-0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-17) before they swept Franklin & Marshall 3-0 (25-11, 25-18, 25-19) in the final match of the day, Saturday inside Memorial Gymnasium. 

The Eagle defense again caused all sorts of problems, first for Virginia Wesleyan, who the Eagles held to a negative hitting percentage in each of the first two sets. The Eagles opened set one on a 15-4 run and never looked back as they cruised to a 25-11 win. Set two saw Juniata uncork at 7-0 run midway through the set with the score 13-9, and a kill from Olivia Foley wrapped things up. Set three saw the Eagles waste no time as they sprinted out with a 10-0 run. The Marlins would close within five, 20-15, but Mackenzie Coley tallied four kills down the stretch, including the winner.

The second match saw more Eagle domination as the Diplomats hit .108, while Juniata hit a solid .303 and opened another match with a 15-4 run. F&M called timeout, but it was to no avail; the Eagles persisted, as a kill from Audrey Muth gave them set point, and an attack error by the Diplomats ended the first set. 

The visitors staked themselves to a 1-4 lead early in the second, but Juniata managed to recapture the lead at 6-5 on a Diplomat error. Juniata maintained a narrow lead for a while, with the lead hovering around four kills. With the score at 18-14, two kills from Muth, along with a block from her and Lexy Bloss gave Juniata a little breathing room. Kiona Sky Rousset-Hernandez would end the match with a service ace. 

Juniata grabbed a narrow lead early and nursed it the rest of the way in the final stanza, never leading by more than the final margin of the set, as Muth's 11^th kill of the night ended the match 25-19. 

Rousset-Hernandez was named MVP of the tournament after her stellar play over the weekend. She managed 7.8 digs per set (78), four aces, and five assists on the weekend. Christy and Podolan joined her on the All-Tournament team. 

All-Tournament Team:

The Eagles will return to action next Friday as they head down to Texas, where they will take on Southwestern at 1:15. They will play host #2 Trinity later in the evening at 8:00.