Southern Miss
17-14
WKU
20-10
Golden Eagles Stun WKU in Comeback
11/16/2018 7:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
HUNTINGTON, W. Va. -Â For the first time since 1988, the Southern Miss volleyball team took down Western Kentucky (20-25, 15-25, 25-16, 25-20, 15-11). The five-set win secured a spot in the Conference USA semifinal match against the winner of UTSA and FIU on Saturday afternoon.Â
The Golden Eagles quickly fell into a deep hole after dropping the first two sets to the second-seeded Hilltoppers. Inspired by an Ashley Berry offensive onslaught, the Golden Eagles started a comeback in the third set after hitting a 9-3 run to go ahead by six. The Hilltoppers momentarily found the scoreboard, but an Alexis Coombs kill gave Southern Miss just what they needed -- a win.Â
The momentum carried over into the fourth set after Southern Miss jumped to a 9-4 lead. On queue, Berry smacked a kill to get that run started. In total, the junior stepped up with 14 kills and nine blocks. When WKU climbed back to tie the game at 19-all, Stephanie Radecki used a timeout to cool the Golden Eagle nerves. Radecki's words inspired a 6-1 run to put the fourth set in the bag.
With the contest being the 10th time they've played in a five-set match, the Golden Eagles certainly knew what needed to be done when the winner-take-all set rolled around. That experience helped them open with an 11-4 lead that forced WKU to use a timeout. The Hilltoppers were able to mount a small comeback, but a service error by the four-time reigning Conference USA Tournament Champions slashed their hopes of making it a fifth one.Â
When it was all said and done, senior Kylie Grandy finished with 14 kills after Berry and the rest of the Golden Eagles picked up their captain from a slow start. Sarah Bell added 45 helpers, five digs, two blocks and two kills. Kellie Garraway, in her first postseason tournament with Southern Miss, stepped up en route to totaling a game-high 13 digs. Catherine Repsher impressed with nine blocks and 10 kills.Â
QOUTABLEÂ
Coach Stephanie RadeckiÂ
"It's a battle. It's a marathon, not a sprint. There's a lot of volleyball left to be played -- I think that's one of my famous lines. We struggled when Western Kentucky was out of system and we missed a lot of opportunities, but I think we made a huge change going into that third set. We started to execute those opportunities and they made the difference. Volleyball is such a momentum sport, and at that point we had gotten a lot of momentum. We had a lot of hitters turn up their level of play. Our blocking became a lot more effective. Where I felt like we have struggled a lot this year, our defense really stepped up. I don't have a problem being the underdog. I think this team is very talented."
"I originally didn't feel too awesome and I was kind of just leaning on my teammates. I really leaned on Ashley Berry a lot. She really stepped up for me and then Sarah's setting was on point the whole time. Our passing got a lot better and I was just set up really well. It was really just my teammates stepping up in the end."
"I think we started off a little slow and for me to be successful, I need my defense. I need my serve receive to put me in good situations and that's what really helped us the last three sets. I think Kellie Garraway did a really awesome job. She has the most digs of anyone on our team and she balled out today. She stepped up as a [defensive specialist]. it was probably the best game I've seen her play all year. She really kept us in the play a lot, especially in the fifth set. It's a total team win today."
The Golden Eagles are scheduled to play at 2:30 p.m. (ET) at the Cam Henderson Center on the campus of Marshall.Â
