Miami Drops Season Opener to Samford

Friday, August 25

Memphis, Tenn.

11 a.m.

Miami University

0-1,0-0MAC

Samford

1-0,0-0SoCon

Samford

Miami (OH)

Photo by: Brian Mack

8/25/2023 12:45:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

MEMPHIS, Tenn. —The Miami University volleyball team dropped its first match of the season against Samford University on Friday afternoon at the Larry O. Finch Center. The Red and White battled until the end, but ultimately fell to Samford in three sets.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The first set was tied at three apiece before Ellie Hanson recorded back-to-back service aces to propel Miami to a 7-3 lead. The Bulldogs stayed resilient and went on to tie the set at 11-11. A service ace from Chelsea Williams, followed by a block from Gentry Warrick, kept Miami right in the thick of it at 14-13. No team led by more than four points until Samford went on a 5-0 run to close the set 25-20.
Miami took an early 2-0 lead in the second set after Hayden Hicks put down a service ace and Hanson smashed a kill. The Red and White attempted to pull away at 10-6 after a pair of Samford attack errors. Despite Miami's strong start, the Bulldogs managed to pull into a 12-12 tie. Samford went on to take the set at 25-19.
In the final set, the score was tied on 15 different occasions and there were also eight lead changes. Raegan Lantz got the scoring started for Miami after knocking down an early kill. No team led by more than two points until the score reached 7-9. Miami tied the match back up at 12-12 after Lantz put down two consecutive kills. A collection of kills and Samford errors kept Miami in it until the end, although the Bulldogs closed out the third set 26-24.

NOTES:

Hayden Hicks recorded a team-high 16 assists.
Gentry Warrick produced a game-high five blocks.
Ellie Hanson and Brooke Jackson each totaled a match-high two service aces.

UP NEXT:
The RedHawks continue the Tiger Brawl at 5 p.m. ET Friday against Alcorn State, before closing out the tournament Saturday afternoon against Memphis at 2 p.m. ET.