CEDAR CITY, Utah — Eastern Washington rallied from an opening-set loss to defeat Southern Utah in four sets, improving to 9-12 overall and 3-6 in Big Sky play. The Eagles responded by winning three straight frames, including a dominant 25-9 performance in the fourth to secure the victory.
Eastern finished with 40 kills while hitting .155 and controlled the net with 14 blocks.
Cassandra Moeller led the Eagles with 10 kills, while
Bria Carlisle and
Judith Bolomboy each added eight. Bolomboy delivered an efficient performance, hitting .583 on 12 attacks while recording four solo blocks and a team-high 12.5 points.
Sidney Gray also totaled four solo blocks, while
Jailyn Davenport finished with 25 assists, three solo blocks and 15 digs.
Elle Bruegman matched Davenport with a team-high 15 digs.
"The past few matches have been tough but our message to the team has been consistent throughout and tonight some things just clicked," said head coach
Jon Haruguchi. "I'm very proud of the team and the job they did tonight."
Southern Utah opened the match with a 6-0 run before Eastern answered with five straight points, highlighted by two Carlisle kills and a pair of Gray blocks. The Eagles eventually erased the deficit and took their first lead at 17-16 before extending it to 19-16. The Thunderbirds responded, however, closing the frame on a 6-1 run to take the opener, 25-20.
Eastern flipped the script in the second set, overcoming deficits of 5-0 and 20-13 to earn a 26-24 win. The Eagles used an 8-1 surge late in the frame, capped by back-to-back Moeller kills, to tie the score at 21-21. Eastern grabbed its first lead at 23-22 and battled through a 24-24 tie before consecutive solo blocks from Bolomboy and Gray completed the comeback and evened the match.
The Eagles carried the momentum into the third, pulling away for a 25-16 victory. With the score tied at 10-10, Eastern rattled off seven unanswered points behind Bruegman's serve. Bolomboy and
Carlyn Rapozo-Kamoku recorded kills during the run, while Bolomboy added another solo block. Eastern continued to build its advantage before Davenport delivered a solo block to bring up set point.
Eastern took control early in the fourth and never looked back. The Eagles raced out to an 11-4 lead behind kills from Moeller and Bolomboy, along with a pair of Davenport solo blocks. Eastern stretched the advantage to 20-7 before Moeller and Gray added kills down the stretch, finishing off the match with a commanding 25-9 victory.
Up Next
Eastern Washington returns home to face Utah Tech on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 2 p.m.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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