Eastern Michigan Athletics
Friday, November 16
Oxford, Ohio
4:30 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
19-13
3
vs
1
Buffalo
18-11
1
2
3
4
F
Eastern Michigan
18
28
25
25
3
Buffalo
25
26
17
21
1
Photo by: Steven King/Steve King Studios
EMU Volleyball Upsets No. 4 Buffalo to Advance to MAC Tournament Semifinal
11/16/2018 7:07:00 PM | Volleyball
Eastern fell behind early but battled back to take victory and advance to Saturday
OXFORD, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The No. 5-ranked Eastern Michigan University volleyball team punched its ticket to the Mid-American Conference semi-final game thanks to a 3-1 comeback victory over No. 4 University at Buffalo Friday, Nov. 16 at Millett Hall on the campus of Miami University.
With the victory, EMU plays in the MAC semi-final for the first time since 2013. The Green and White advance to take on No. 1 seed Bowling Green State University Saturday, Nov. 17 at 4:30 p.m.
After falling in the first set 18-25, the Eagles rallied back to win 28-26, 25-17, and 25-21. Eastern outhit Buffalo .324 to .296 in the match, and held narrow advantages in digs (51 to 46) and service aces (4 to 3). The win marked the second consecutive season that EMU eliminated UB from the MAC Touranment.
Redshirt sophomore Cassie Haut (Monroe, Mich.-St. Mary's Catholic Central) had a dominating performance, crushing 21 kills and hitting .586 in the match. Senior Jordan Smith (Solon, Iowa-Solon) was the only other Eagle with double digit kills, finishing with 13, but the balanced attack and outstanding defense lifted EMU to victory.
The setting duo of Mallory Rajewski (Midland, Mich.-Midland) and Riley Taylor (Indianapolis, Ind.-Perry Meridian) had 30 and 21 assists, respectively, and also each added an ace. The defense was a one-two punch from senior libero Alyssa LaFace (Allen Park, Mich.-Allen Park) and sophomore Franki Strefling (Niles, Mich.-Buchanan), who finished with 15 and 12 digs, respectively.
Junior Ariel Hamby (Oak Park, Ill.-Oak Park River Forest) added nine kills and two blocks, while sophomore middle hitter April Houston (Minneapolis, Minn.-Southwest) added eight kills and a team-high four blocks.
No. 5 seed Eastern Michigan takes on No. 1 seed Bowling Green in Millett Hall on the campus of Miami University Saturday, Nov. 17 at 4:30 p.m.
With the victory, EMU plays in the MAC semi-final for the first time since 2013. The Green and White advance to take on No. 1 seed Bowling Green State University Saturday, Nov. 17 at 4:30 p.m.
After falling in the first set 18-25, the Eagles rallied back to win 28-26, 25-17, and 25-21. Eastern outhit Buffalo .324 to .296 in the match, and held narrow advantages in digs (51 to 46) and service aces (4 to 3). The win marked the second consecutive season that EMU eliminated UB from the MAC Touranment.
Redshirt sophomore Cassie Haut (Monroe, Mich.-St. Mary's Catholic Central) had a dominating performance, crushing 21 kills and hitting .586 in the match. Senior Jordan Smith (Solon, Iowa-Solon) was the only other Eagle with double digit kills, finishing with 13, but the balanced attack and outstanding defense lifted EMU to victory.
The setting duo of Mallory Rajewski (Midland, Mich.-Midland) and Riley Taylor (Indianapolis, Ind.-Perry Meridian) had 30 and 21 assists, respectively, and also each added an ace. The defense was a one-two punch from senior libero Alyssa LaFace (Allen Park, Mich.-Allen Park) and sophomore Franki Strefling (Niles, Mich.-Buchanan), who finished with 15 and 12 digs, respectively.
Junior Ariel Hamby (Oak Park, Ill.-Oak Park River Forest) added nine kills and two blocks, while sophomore middle hitter April Houston (Minneapolis, Minn.-Southwest) added eight kills and a team-high four blocks.
No. 5 seed Eastern Michigan takes on No. 1 seed Bowling Green in Millett Hall on the campus of Miami University Saturday, Nov. 17 at 4:30 p.m.
Team Stats
EMU
UB
Kills
62
62
Errors
18
20
Attempts
136
142
Hitting %
.324
.296
Points
73.0
73.0
Assists
55
57
Aces
4
3
Blocks
7.0
8.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
21
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Kills
13
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Players Mentioned
RS
/ VolleyballMB/RS
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
S
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