YPSILANTI, Mich. – After dominating the first set it began to look bleak for the Miami University volleyball team as Eastern Michigan came back to take the next two frames. However, the RedHawks held tough to take the fourth set and then fought off three match points in the decider to earn a dramatic 3-2 (25-9, 18-25, 16-25, 25-23, 18-16) win Friday evening. Miami improves to 14-5 overall and 6-1 in the Mid-American Conference. The Eagles fall to 13-8 overall and 5-2 in the MAC.

"What a match!" said head coach Carolyn Condit. "We often got in our own way, but the truth is this team pulls together when it counts. As coaches we are proud of how willing they are to 'run through the fire' and take on the pressure by staying aggressive. They took turns making great plays and serving well, and our bench was incredible!"

On a night where neither team's offense was rolling, the Red and White stepped with 13 blocks, with junior middle hitter Margaret Payne, junior right side hitter Haley Stewart and freshman outside hitter Gaby Harper leading the way with five each. Payne was tops on the RedHawks with 13 kills and only made two attack errors in 29 attempts for a .379 attack percentage. Freshman outside hitter Sophie Riemersma contributed 12 kills, while Harper had a double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs.

Miami came out focused in set one as it did not record a single attack error, while the Eagles had 13 in the frame. Eastern Michigan took the early 4-3 advantage. The RedHawks answered with the next nine in a row. Senior middle hitter Courtney Simons had two kills off assists from freshman setter Jennifer Schulze. Stewart and Riemersma teamed up for a block to make it 17-6 as Miami continued to force EMU into attack errors. The Eagles were unable to get into double digits as a kill from Riemersma off an assist from sophomore setter Morgan Seaman finished off a 25-9 victory.
Eastern Michigan rebounded in set two by taking an 11-5 lead. A block by Harper and Simons, followed by two straight kills by Harper cut the deficit to three at 8-11. However Eastern Michigan would not allow Miami to get closer than that throughout the middle portion of the set, forcing a RedHawk timeout at 14-20. The Eagles would go on to take a 25-18 win.

Three blocks by Payne, teaming up twice with Stewart and once with Harper, put Miami on top 3-1 to begin set three. After a bit of back-and-forth, a service ace from Riemersma gave the 'Hawks an 8-7 advantage. Eastern Michigan answered with a 12-4 run to take control at 19-12. The RedHawks scored the next two off a pair of blocks, but a 6-2 finish by the Eagles gave them a 25-16 victory and a 2-1 lead in the match.

Trailing 3-4 in set four, a pair of EMU attack errors, two kills from Harper and a kill from Riemersma put Miami in front, 8-4. Harper and Payne each had another kill apiece, while the Eagles made several errors to help make it a 14-7 lead in favor of the RedHawks. Sophomore outside hitter Sarah Wojick had a service ace, while a block from Stewart and freshman middle hitter Corinne Jemison made it 19-12 Miami. Eastern Michigan battled back, going on a 9-2 run to tie the score at 21. An Eagle attack error, followed by a Seaman service ace made it 23-21, but EMU scored the next two to retie the score. The 'Hawks would not be deterred as a kill from Riemersma and a block by Payne and Wojick gave them a 25-23 lead and sent the match to the decisive fifth set.

There were seven lead changes throughout the first 24 points of the first set as neither team built a lead of more than one point. Eastern Michigan finally broke through with the next two to create match point at 14-12. Senior right side hitter Stela Kukoc answered with a kill to force a timeout by the Eagles. Out of the break an EMU attack error tied the score at 14. A setting error followed to give Miami match point at 15-14 as the Eagles used their final timeout. This time Eastern Michigan fought it off and scored the next point as well to get their third match point attempt at 16-15. The Eagles hit it long so the score was tied at 16. Kukoc then recorded a service ace to give the 'Hawks their second match point. This time they would capitalize as Jemison was able to just graze the line to finish off an 18-16 victory and give Miami the 3-2 win in the match.

Schulze had her first career double-double with a team-high 20 assists and 14 digs. Seaman just missed the double-double with 19 assists and eight digs. Sophomore libero Abigail Huser led the RedHawks with 21 digs.

Miami completes its road trip on Saturday when it travels to Central Michigan for an 8 p.m. match.