Huntington, Ind. - The Marian volleyball team rebounded from their loss on Wednesday with a statement on Friday night, sweeping Huntington on their home floor. Marian's high-octane offense hit .446 in the win, as the Knights improved to 8-5 on the year and 2-1 in Crossroads League play.
The Knights wasted no time taking control of the first set, going on a 6-0 run after yielding the first point of the match to force an early timeout. Marian continued to attack in two and three point bursts, gaining a double-digit advantage at 14-4 following kills from
Khori Dryden. A 4-0 run through a Huntington timeout pushed the Knights in front by 13, and the lead in the set would gradually build to 16 points, as the final rally of the set hit the difference with Marian taking a 25-9 win.
Madison Brooks and
Jaymison Summers teamed up for a block on the winning point in set one.
Huntington responded by challenging Marian early in the second set, trading points with the Knights throughout first 18 rallies. The Knights were able to break the 9-9 deadlock with back to back kills from Dryden and
Averi Lanman, with the pair of spikes providing a 4-0 run when the dust settled after a Forester timeout. Huntington would rally back within two points on two separate occasions after allowing the run, but couldn't keep up with Marian as
Mikayla Christiansen put the set in her own hands as she sparked another 4-0 rally. The run pushed Marian in front 19-13, setting up the final run as Marian ended strong with a solo block from Brooks in the 25-14 victory.
The Knights rotated through their lineup in the final set, falling behind early in the game before using a 4-0 run to get back into system. Dryden and Lanman helped the Knights balloon their lead to seven points as part of a 7-0 run, putting the final game in the sweep out of reach. Huntington would get within five after allowing the run, but were unable to close the game as Marian ended the night by scoring the final five points, taking set three 25-20.
Marian posted an effecient hitting percentage of .446 in the win, and were led in kills by Christiansen's nine.
Gabby Fish and Dryden each had eight kills in the win
Emma Lyons led the back row with 10 digs, and
Logan Smith posted a Marian-best 15 assists to lead the setters. As a team, Marian had eight blocks, with
Madison Brooks leading the Knights with 5.0 total blocks.
Marian will finish their week looking for another road win tomorrow, as they travel to Goshen College on Saturday afternoon.
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