Box Score

Box Score (PDF)

OXFORD, Ohio ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃÆ'¢'¬" A strong overall effort got the Miami University volleyball team back on the winning track as it defeated Southern Illinois, 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-13) in its morning match at the Miami Best Western Sycamore Inn Invitational. The RedHawks improve to 1-1 on the season, while the Salukis fall to 0-3.

"It's exciting to get our first win at home in 2017," said head coach Carolyn Condit. "Our passers did a much better job today and our setters were strong in getting the ball to both antennas. Overall we got a good mix of athletes in there and got a lot of individuals some playing time. We're still figuring ourselves out but it's good to see a little more teamwork and get some confidence from this win."

As a team, Miami hit .312 for the match and held Southern Illinois to a .135 attack percentage. Senior outside hitter Olivia Rusek led the offense with 11 kills. She only had two errors in 25 attempts for a .360 attack percentage. She added 10 digs to make it a double-double.

Kills from Rusek, sophomore middle hitter Margaret Payne and sophomore middle hitter Haley Stewart helped the RedHawks to an 8-4 advantage to begin set one. The Salukis pulled to within one at 9-10 before a kill from Payne off an assist from redshirt junior Mackenzie Zielinski got Miami's offense rolling again. Leading 19-16, a kill from junior outside hitter Stela Kukoc and back-to-back blocks by Payne and Rusek were part of a 5-1 run that gave the 'Hawks set point at 24-17. SIU made it interesting by scoring the next five in a row, but a kill from Rusek finished off a 25-22 win.

Trailing 5-6 in set two, Miami went on a 7-1 run to take control at 12-7. Senior right side hitter Katie Tomasic had two kills during that stretch. Southern Illinois cut the deficit to one on three separate occasions, putting down a kill to make it 16-17 at one point. A kill from Kukoc and two from Tomasic were part of four straight that kept the Salukis at bay. A kill by Payne finished off a 25-18 victory.

The RedHawks raced out to an 8-1 lead to begin set three. Rusek had two kills during that stretch. SIU scored six in a row to pull within one at 7-8 and force a Miami timeout. The break did the 'Hawks well as Stewart scored three more kills as part of a 6-0 run that made it 14-7 and forced the Salukis to call timeout. The offensive onslaught continued after that break as senior right side hitter Katie Coverdale put down two kills off assists from freshman setter Morgan Seaman to push the lead to 17-8. In front, 20-12, Miami closed out with a 5-1 run to take a 25-13 win. Freshman outside hitter Sarah Wojick put down the winning kill.

Payne had nine kills for Miami, while Stewart finished with a career-high eight. Tomasic also had eight kills to go along with a team-leading three blocks. Zielinski led the RedHawks with 18 assists, while senior libero Maeve McDonald had 12 digs.

Miami completes play at its home tournament later Saturday when it takes on Northern Arizona at 5 p.m. The match can be seen live on ESPN3.