Oct. 29, 2011
Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
OXFORD, Ohio - The Miami RedHawk volleyball team took the first two sets, but dropped the final three in a heartbreaking, 2-3 (25-16, 25-20, 22-25, 15-25, 10-15), defeat to Kent State Saturday night. Cassie Farrell and Lisa Treadway led the Red and White with 13 kills each. Miami falls to 12-13 overall and 3-8 in the Mid-American Conference. The Golden Flashes improve to 9-18 overall and 2-10 in the MAC.
Tied at six in the first set, the RedHawks began to make their move. Two straight service aces by Amy Kendall, followed by two kills from Farrell and a Kent State attack error made it 11-6 and forced a timeout. After the break, the Golden Flashes would get to within two at 10-13, but kills by Farrell and Christina Menche would spark a 9-1 run that made it 22-11. The RedHawks would eventually finish off a 25-16 win with an Amy Raseman kill off of a Meg Riley assist.
Four kills from Menche would push Miami in front, 14-7, in set two. A block from Raseman and Menche, followed by a service ace from Riley gave the RedHawks their largest lead at 16-7. Kent State would close to within four at 15-19 on an 8-3 run, but two kills apiece from Farrell and Treadway would stop the bleeding and give Miami set point at 24-17. The Golden Flashes scored three straight after that, but a service error would give the RedHawks a 25-20 victory.
With the score tied at 10 in set three, Kent State went on a 6-2 run to take a 16-12 advantage. Miami answered with a 6-1 run of its own to tie the score at 17. The Golden Flashes responded with the next three points to force a RedHawk timeout. Riley would record a kill to make it 18-20, but a 4-2 run gave Kent State set point at 24-20. Miami fought it off twice with a kill by Farrell and an error on the Flashes, but an attack error would give Kent State a 25-22 win.
Set four started off well for Miami as Treadway and Farrell each had two kills early. The turning point came with the score tied at nine. Kent State would go on a 9-0 run that would put the set out of reach. Farrell would record two more kills, but the Golden Flashes would even the match with a 25-15 victory.
Raseman scored two kills as the teams split the first six points of the decisive fifth set. Kent State responded with a 6-3 run to take a 9-6 lead. Kills from Kendall and Raseman pulled the RedHawks to within two at 8-10, but a 3-1 run by the Golden Flashes made it 13-9. Jenn Caylor would answer with a kill for Miami, but Kent State responded with two straight points to earn the 15-10 victory and take the match, 3-2.
In addition to Farrell and Treadway's 13 kills, Menche recorded a career-high 12 to go along with six blocks. Madison Hardy led the way with 22 digs, while Kendall had 27 assists.
Miami returns to action on Sunday when it hosts Ohio at 3 p.m.
