AKRON, Ohio – The Miami University volleyball team avenged its early season loss to Akron with a 3-1 (25-21, 25-18, 20-25, 25-23) victory over the Zips on Friday. With their ninth straight win, the RedHawks are now 16-8 overall and lead the Mid-American Conference with an 11-2 record. Akron falls to 16-8 overall and 9-4 in the MAC.

"Akron's efficient, fast tempo offense continued to challenge our defense," said head coach Carolyn Condit. "Very proud of our defenders' gutsy effort which allowed us to earn more digs and blocks. Strong serving and aggressive attacking solidified this key road win!"

Junior right side hitter Avarie Powell and senior middle hitter Margaret Payne were the offensive stars for Miami on Friday. Powell put down a career-high 15 kills. She made only three errors in 28 attempts for a .429 attack percentage and also added four blocks. Payne was right behind her with 14 kills. She had only three errors in 25 attempts for a .440 attack percentage.

Akron scored the first three points of set one before kills from Powell and Payne were part of three straight for Miami that tied the score. After that, the Zips were able to maintain a two to three point lead throughout the first half of the set. Trailing 10-13, two blocks by Powell were part of five straight for the RedHawks that put them on top for the first time at 15-13. Tied at 17, kills by Payne and senior outside hitter Taylor Daignault off assists from junior setter Morgan Seaman were part of a 4-0 run that put Miami in control at 21-17. That was all the 'Hawks needed as the teams traded side outs the rest of the way until they earned the 25-21 victory.

Two kills by Powell off assists from sophomore setter Louise Comerford and a two blocks by sophomore outside hitter Gaby Harper gave Miami a 5-2 advantage in set two. The teams traded points until the Zips were able to go on a run to tie the score at 11. Tied at 12, back-to-back kills from freshman right side hitter Allyson Severance and Harper turned momentum Miami's way. Kills by Payne and Daignault, along with a service ace by Comerford were part of an 8-2 run that gave the RedHawks a 22-16 lead. A couple more kills from Powell and a service ace by junior libero Abigail Huser finished off a 25-18 win.

Despite giving up the first three points of set three, kills from Powell, Payne and Harper helped Miami take an 8-4 advantage. A 10-4 run from Akron gave it a 14-12 lead. Payne put down a couple of kills to keep the RedHawks close, but a 6-1 run put the Zips in control at 22-16. They went on to earn a 25-20 victory to get on the board.

Tied at six in set four, kills from Severance and Payne, as well as a block from Payne and Powell were part of four straight that gave Miami a 10-6 lead. Kills from senior middle hitter Haley Stewart and Powell helped maintain the advantage. However, the Zips did not give up and eventually fought back to tie the score at 17. The teams traded side outs until the RedHawks scored two in a row to go up, 21-19. Akron fought right back with two in a row of its own. Again the teams traded side outs until the score was tied at 23. At that point Severance took over. She put down a kill to give Miami match point, and then recorded a service ace to finish off the 25-23 victory and complete the 3-1 win.

Miami outhit Akron, .241-.179. Harper finished with nine kills and eight digs. Stewart tied for the team lead with four blocks. Comerford recorded a team-high 25 assists, while junior libero Abigail Huser had 21 digs.

The RedHawks look to continue their win streak on Saturday when they travel to Buffalo. First serve is at 6 p.m. and it will be streamed live on the Bulls' YouTube channel.