Aug. 29, 2005
Box Score
OXFORD, Ohio--In its opening match of the 2005 season, Miami University's volleyball team (1-0) charged out of the gates to collect a three-game win (30-23, 30-21, 30-24) over former Mid-American Conference foe Marshall University (0-1) on Monday evening.
Following a one-year absence do to injury, Miami senior outside hitter Kristen Walters (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) made a quick impact in her first match back with the RedHawks, leading the team with 11 kills and notching a .556 hitting percentage.
Trailing 11-12 in the first game, Miami went on a 10-2 surge to claim a 21-14 edge, highlighted by a kill and a block from sophomore middle hitter Carli Reihman (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline Academy), kills by Walters and senior setter Megan Clark (Solon, Ohio/Solon) and a service ace from freshman middle hitter Emily Schroeder (Indianapolis, Ind./Bishop Chatard). From there, Miami was spurred by four sophomore outside hitter Jeanna Staun (Loveland, Ohio/Ursuline Academy) kills, including the game winner, to capture the 30-23 game one win.
Bolstered by a .406 team hitting percentage behind five kills and a .500 hitting percentage from Reihman and five kills and a .444 hitting percentage by Walters, Miami sailed to a 30-21 win in the second game. Three kills from Reihman and a pair of kills from Schroeder helped Miami quickly surge to a 14-6 lead. Marshall was able to close the gap to four, 13-17, but the RedHawks continued to tack on the points en route to the nine-point, game-two win.
In the third game, Miami found itself trailing 12-16 but collected nine unanswered points to post a 21-16 advantage and a lead it would not relinquish. Sophomore outside hitter Kate Norris (Indianapolis, Ind./Bishop Chatard) hammered three kills during the run, while Schroeder served up two aces for the RedHawks. The Thundering Herd pulled within four points, 20-24, but that was as close as they would get as Schroeder iced the game with a kill to hand Miami the 30-24 win.
Reihman picked up where she left off after a stellar freshman campaign in 2004, posting 10 kills and a .421 hitting percentage. Norris collected eight kills off 14 attempts with no errors to lead the RedHawks with a .571 hitting percentage. Schroeder served up three of Miami's six aces in her first appearance as a RedHawk. Clark tallied 37 assists for Miami, while Staun led all players with nine digs.
Kelly-Anne Billingy posted a match-high 21 kills for Marshall, while Amber Sims knocked down a match-best five blocks (2 solo; 3 block assists).
Miami returns to action this weekend at the Hofstra Invitational. On Friday, Sept. 2, Miami battles IPFW at 5 p.m. The RedHawks clashe with Hofstra at 11:30 a.m. and Temple at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.
