Eagles Drop Opening MAC Match to Western in Five Sets

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YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team opened up its Mid-American Conference portion of the 2012 campaign Friday, Sept. 21, when it played host to the Western Michigan University Broncos. The Eagles fell in five sets (25-21, 27-29, 20-25, 25-15, 10-15) at the Convocation Center.

Eastern Michigan falls to 10-7 on the season and 0-1 in conference play, while the Broncos are now 8-5 and 1-0 on the year.

The Eagles were led by senior captain Rachel Iaquaniello (Plymouth, Mich.-Dearborn Divine Child), who posted her 10th double-double of the year with 26 kills and 14 digs. Erin Short (Orrville, Ohio-Orrville) notched a double-double performance with 11 kills and 15 digs and Kim Hildreth (Novi, Mich.-Novi) earned a double-double with 47 assists and 14 digs. Kristen Baker (Mentor, Ohio-Mentor) posted nine kills and Sierra Reed (Parker City, Ind.-Wapahani) led EMU with 20 digs.

Eastern won the opening set, 25-21, using Iaquaniello's seven first-set kills. The Green and White hit an even .200 (13-4-45). Crawshaw posted three kills, hitting .600 (3-0-5) in the opening frame. Hildreth notched 11 assists in the first setas well. The Eagles held the Broncos to just a .174 attack percentage (13-5-46).

EMU dropped the second set, 29-27, after fighting back to even the set at 24-24. Iaquaniello hit .312 (6-1-16) in the second frame, while Baker posted a .444 attack percentage (4-0-9) in the set. Paige Roback (Maumee, Ohio-Notre Dame Academy) notched four kills and Hildreth added 15 to her total in the second set. As a team, EMU hit .275 (18-4-51) in the set, while the Broncos posted a .321 hitting percentage (22-5-53). Ali Gossen posted six kills in the set, while WMU had four other athletes with four kill apiece.

The Broncos went on a 17-3 run midway through the third frame, helping Western to a 25-20 set victory. The Eagles struggled on the offensive side, hitting -.047 (7-9-43). Short led the offense with four kills, while Iaquaniello added three. Despite holding Western to a .080 attack percentage (14-10-50) the Eagles fell behind, 2-1, after three sets.

Eastern rebounded in the fourth set to force a fifth game. The Eagles topped Western, 25-15, in the fourth frame on the back of a seven-kill performance by Iaquaniello. Baker, Roback and Short notched a pair of kills in the frame, while Eastern hit .312 (13-3-32) as a team. The Eagles' defense held WMU to a .081 attack percentage (11-8-37).

Western proved too much to handle in the final frame, topping EMU, 15-10, in the set. The Broncos hit .450 (10-1-20) in the final set, while Eastern hit .250 (8-2-24), eventually falling to the Broncos.

Eastern hits the hardwood again Saturday, Sept. 22, when they host Northern Illinois University at the Convocation Center. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

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Team Stats

Rachel Iaquaniello

Erin Short

Kristen Baker

Paige Roback

Eastern Michigan Athletics