Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
4-19,3-8MAC
Bowling Green
14-8,9-2MAC
EMU Volleyball Pushes BGSU to Fourth Set in Setback
10/22/2022 6:45:00 PM | Volleyball
Chase's 11 blocks moves her to first place in the Mid-American Conference
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team forced a fourth set on the league leader, Bowling Green State University, Saturday, Oct. 22, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center, after defeating the Falcons in five the night before.
The 1-3 conference loss moves Eastern Michigan's overall record to 4-19 and 3-8 mark in Mid-American Conference play.
Senior Samantha Basham (Granville, Ohio.-Newark Catholic) finished with 13 kills on the day to lead the Eagles offense. Defensively, the Green and White tallied three players reach double figures in digs, including 17 from freshman Emma McMahon (Monoreville, Ind.-Bellmont), 15 from junior Bella Hommes (Grand Rapids, Mich.-Forrest Hills Northern), and 12 more from freshman Carlina Bender (Hudsonville, Mich.-Hudsonville). From the front row, senior Raeven Chase (Toronto, Ontario - Michael Power St. Joseph Catholic) contributed 11 blocks, adding to her total 96 on the season, good for the top spot in total blocks across the MAC.
How It Happened
SET 1 | After a back-and-forth first set, the Eagles fell, losing 25-23 in a set that featured seven lead changes and was tied 12 times. Neither team led by more than three points in the stanza.
SET 2 | Eastern Michigan then lost the second set 25-16 to fall behind in the match two sets to none. Eastern trailed by as many as nine points as Bowling Green grabbed the advantage for good at 5-4 in a set that was tied up three times before the Falcons took over the lead.
SET 3 | The team rallied back to put the score two sets to one, winning their first set of the match in the third stanza. The Eagles came out on top of a close battle, winning 26-24 in a set that was tied six times and had three lead changes. Eastern Michigan's front row had a solid defensive performance, blocking five Bowling Green attacks in the stanza.
SET 4 | Despite great efforts, EMU couldn't keep the rally going and fell in the fourth set 25-20 to drop the match. Bowling Green grabbed the lead at 19-18 and Eastern Michigan was never able to recover in a set that was tied up two times before the Falcons took over in the second half of the set.
Match Notes
» Chase set a season-high with 11 blocks in the loss. It was her second double-digit block match of the season, with the first coming against the University of Louisiana, Aug. 26, where she registered 10. She continues to jump up the NCAA total blocks ranking, vaulting into 21st place in the nation and first in the Mid-American Conference with 96.0 blocks on the season.
» Sophomore Kendall Burk (Bloomington, Ill.-University) set a career-high in blocks with 4, besting her previous high of 2 set at Ball State, Oct. 1.
» Eastern had three players tally double-digit points in Chase (13.5), Basham (13.5) and sophomore Madeline Timmerman (Crystal Lake, Ill.-Central) (11.5). This is the second consecutive game that the Eagles have had three players in double-digits in points and 11th in the 2022 season.
» Basham led the team with 13 kills on the afternoon. It was the 10th time this season that the senior has had double-digit kills in a match.
» Sophomore Emily Surin (Plainfield, Ill.-Joliet Catholic) recorded her first kill in an Eastern uniform in the fourth set. Additionally, the transfer picked up another half point on a block assist with Chase. Those 1.5 points are the first as an Eagle for the Illinois native.
» McMahon tied her career-high in service aces with two. She matched that total two other times this season, at Liberty University, Sept. 17, and at Central Michigan University, Oct. 19.
» For the ninth consecutive match, McMahon tallied double-digit digs, extending the streak with 17 against the Falcons.
» In her big series against the Falcons, Burk recorded a total 82 assists, the most by any Eagle in one weekend this season.
» Three Eastern Michigan players tallied a minimum of double-digit digs. It is the fifth time this season that the Green and White have had three or more players with double-digit digs in a single match.
» Hommes registered a season-high 15 digs for the Green and White. With this occurrence, it is now the second time this season she has had double-digits digs in a match.
Historical Notes
» The all-time series record against the Falcons moves to 39-26, in favor of BGSU. The Eagles have now split the season series against Bowling Green. It is the first time the Green and White have split the series with the Falcons since 2018.
» Chase tallied 11 total block assists for the Green and White in the match. With the result, the senior accrued the tied for fourth most block assist in a match in Eastern volleyball history, trailing only herself once, Roxanne Munch, Keely Nunamker, and sharing the tie with Sam Falco and Alexis Tipton.
Up Next
The Green and White will take a break from competition before traveling to Western New York to take on the Bulls of the University at Buffalo, Friday, Oct. 28 at 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29 will see the Eagles take the floor with the Zips of the University of Akron. The match in Akron, Ohio is set to start at 4 p.m.
