Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
13-19,7-11MAC
Buffalo
16-15,12-6MAC
Volleyball Concludes 2024 Campaign With Loss at Buffalo
11/16/2024 6:38:00 PM | Volleyball
The Eagles improved their win total by eight from the 2023 season in the second year of the Head Coach Kevin Foeman era
BUFFALO, N.Y. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team concluded its 2024 season with a four-set loss against the Buffalo Bulls Saturday, Nov. 16, inside Alumni Arena.
The Eagles concluded their season a much improved team as they increased their win total by eight compared to the 2023 season and recorded four more conference wins in the second season of the Head Coach Kevin Foeman era.
The Eagles were led by a double-double from Ava Siefke (Cincinnati, Ohio/Saint Ursula Academy), who registered 12 kills and 11 digs on the day. Kaili Doctor (Mars, Pa./Pine-Richland/N.C. A&T State) also added 10 kills to help the attack. On the defensive end, Hannah Blaney (Saline, Mich./Saline/Rhode Island) chipped in with 13 digs to go with four blocks from Hatteras Welker (Sunbury, Ohio/Big Walnut).
How it Happened
SET 1 | The Eagles fell in a tight first set, 26-24, in a game that was tied four times and had two lead changes.
SET 2 | Eastern Michigan evened the match at 1-1 with a 25-22 victory in set two. The Eagles grabbed the advantage for good at 9-8 in a set that had just one lead change before EMU took over the lead. The Eastern Michigan offense also got a boost from four aces in the stanza.
SET 3 | Buffalo responded to win set number three, putting Eastern Michigan in a 2-1 hole. The Eagles fell behind on the first point and never took the lead before losing the set, 25-19.
SET 4 | Eastern Michigan then lost the fourth set, 25-12 to finish off the match. The Eagles fell behind on the first point and fought from behind the rest of the way before dropping the set.
Match Notes
» With 62 digs to the Bulls' 58, Eastern had more digs than its opponent for the 18th time this season. The Eagles are 10-8 when doing so.
» Doctor posted 10 kills. The performance marked her team-leading 15th double-digit kill outing. Doctor finished the season as the team leader in kills with 238 on the year and has notched at least 10 in 15 of her 23 matches.
» Maddie Stayer (Mentor, Ohio/Mentor/Southern Miss./Jacksonville State) led the team in assists for the 10th time this season with 24, marking her seventh game with at least 20 dimes in 2024.
» Blaney led the squad in digs for the 26th time this season with 13 on the night. Blaney ended the regular season ranking second in the MAC with 504 digs and has recorded at least 10 in 65-of-105 (61.9%) career matches.
» Siefke recorded her third double-double of the season and seventh of her career as she drilled 12 kills to go with 11 digs. Her 12 kills led the team, marking her fifth time doing so this season. She ended the 2024 campaign with six matches with 10+ kills and 12 with double-digit digs.
» Eastern has had at least one player record a double-double in 13 matches this season, It is 9-4 when doing so.
Historical Notes
» The 2024 team increased their win total by eight compared to the 2024 season (five wins). That marks the biggest win improvement over a season since the 2017 also improved by eight wins compared to the 2016 season (eight wins).
» Saturday afternoon's match marked the 34th all-time between the Eagles and Bulls. Overall, the Eagles hold a 22-11 all-time record against Buffalo and 10-6 mark when facing it in Western New York.
» The 2024 team has proven to be one of the best blocking teams in Eastern history as it has totaled 305.5 rejections this season. That number is good for the second most in program history. With 320 TB, the 2017 squad holds the record for the most in a single season in program history.
» In terms of blocks per set, the 2024 team set the program record, averaging 2.48 rejections per set.
» Welker increased her block total to 135 on the season, tying for second all-time in the Eastern rally scoring era (2008-pres.) with Raeven Chase – 2021(135). Additionally, Welker holds the most blocks from an Eastern freshman in program history during the rally scoring era.
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