After earning the team’s first sweep on the road in conference play in three years, the Kent State volleyball team returned home to begin a two-game series against the Central Michigan Chippewas.
Entering the contest, the Flashes were coming off a split against Miami, where the Flashes lost the first contest before rebounding to sweep the Redhawks the next night.
From a standings perspective, these matchups were critical, as CMU entered on the edge of being in tournament position and KSU was also in that cluster, albeit towards the bottom.
Game One
Thursday’s match began with a retro vibe in the stands as it was 90’s night in MAC Center. The Flashes got off to a good start, scoring the first three points of the first set, before the teams traded points for the rest of the set. Central Michigan came out on top 25-23.
Central then boat raced KSU in the second set 25-12, closing the set on a 9-2 run after going on a 7-2 run earlier in the set.
Facing a sweep, the Flashes needed to rebound after losing the second set in dominating fashion. KSU started successfully, holding a lead throughout most of the beginning portion of the set.
The Flashes began to run away with the set before the Chippewas pulled to within two, with KSU breaking and then holding serve to close out the set 25-21.
Still, the Flashes were unable to build off that match and lost the fourth set 25-18 and the match 3-1. Despite the loss, senior
outside hitter Mackenzie McGuire notched her ninth double-double of the season.
Game Two
Looking to rebound after a tough loss, the Flashes donned pink jerseys to block out breast cancer.
Central played spoiler, jumping out to a quick 8-2 lead to start the match before KSU fought back to tie on a service ace from McGuire.
The Chippewas managed to pull away to earn a 25-18 set one victory.
The next set was more of the same, as CMU led throughout most of the set and won 25-18. Set three was not much different from either of the first two sets, as the Chippewas ran away with this set to complete the match and weekend sweep of the Flashes.
The losses dropped the Flashes to 8-14 overall. The Flashes fell to 3-8 in conference play and sit in the basement of the Mid-American Conference.
Up Next
The team will look to get revenge on Ohio University, who swept the Flashes 3-0 on Oct. 7, Tuesday in Athens, OH. First serve will be at 6 p.m.
Stone O’Bryant is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].
