Kent State University
6-2,0-0MAC
Charleston Southern
4-6,0-0Big South
McGuire’s MVP Performance Leads Kent State to Unbeaten Weekend
9/10/2022 10:46:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Kent State overcame slow starts and put the finishing touches on an undefeated weekend at the Marshall Invite with a 3-1 win over Charleston Southern and a 3-2 victory over the host Thundering Herd on Saturday. The Golden Flashes (7-2) are off to their best non-conference start since going 8-2 in 2014.
Tournament MVP Mackenzie McGuire led the attack with 39 kills. The freshman began the day with 24 kills against Charleston Southern to match her career-high set on Friday. Graduate student Alex Haffner totaled 93 assists to go with a team-best four aces and also earned a spot on the all-tournament team.
Graduate student Erin Gardner wore the libero jersey for the final six sets of the day and tallied 51 digs. Senior Gracey Jarecke added 29 digs. Graduate student Danie Tyson totaled a team-high nine blocks, while sophomore Ainsley Guse was right behind with eight.
Match 1: Kent State 3, Charleston Southern 1 (13-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-23)
For the second match in a row, Kent State dropped the first set by double-digit points before regrouping to win the next three. Charleston Southern hit .406 with just one error in the opening set, but the Golden Flashes totaled eight blocks over the final three sets, holding the Buccaneers to a .157 clip in the process.
Mackenzie McGuire matched her career-high from Friday night with 24 kills. Taylor Heberle added seven kills. Alex Haffner just missed a double-double with 41 assists and nine digs.
Gracey Jarecke paced the defense with 21 digs. Erin Gardner and Bryn Roberts added 17 and 10 digs, respectively. Lana Strejcek had a team-high four blocks.
How it Happened…
Set 1: Charleston Southern never trailed and posted 14 kills while committed just a single attack error, compared to 10 kills and seven hitting miscues by Kent State.
Set 2: The Flashes trailed by five early but answered with a 22-12 run to tie it at a set apiece. Setter Alex Haffner recorded kills on all four of her attempts in the set.
Set 3: After splitting the first 22 points, Kent State took a 16-11 lead on two kills by Mackenzie McGuire, one kill each from Taylor Heberle and Lana Strejcek, and a Buccaneers attack error. McGuire and Heberle each had five kills in the set to put the Flashes ahead.
Set 4: Kent State appeared in control with a 16-11 lead, but Charleston Southern rallied to tie it at 17-17. The teams traded the next six points before the Flashes went on a 4-1 run. The Bucs denied Kent State on a pair of match point opportunities, but McGuire was able to deliver the fatal swing on the ensuing points with her ninth kill of the set.
Match 2: Kent State 3, Marshall 2 (12-25, 29-27, 26-24, 23-25, 15-7)
Kent State closed on a 12-2 run to secure its first five-set win of the season. Marshall hit .419 during a decisive first set. Each of the next three sets were determined by just two points before the Golden Flashes dominated the fifth.
Savannah Matthews scored the final three points of the night and finished with a team-high 17 kills. Matthews added 12 digs for her fifth double-double of the season. Mackenzie McGuire added 15 kills and Mia Soerensen posted a .440 hitting percentage while totaling a career-high 12 kills. Alex Haffner orchestrated the offense and totaled 52 assists.
Three Flashes contributed to five or more of the team's 14 blocks in the match. Ainsley Guse had a career-high eight blocks, including four solo stuffs. Danie Tyson and Soerensen added six and five blocks, respectively.
Erin Gardner had a season-high 34 digs to lead the floor defense.
How it Happened…
Set 1: Marshall stormed out to a 14-3 lead and led by as many as 14 points.
Set 2: Five of Kent State's six blocks in the set came after trailing 18-14 and helped prevent the host from going ahead 2-0. A kill by Alex Haffner gave the Flashes a 24-23 lead and the first chance at set point. After trading the next few points, the Thundering Herd went ahead 27-26. Savannah Matthews answered with her fifth kill of the set. Erin Gardner followed with an ace, and Mia Soerensen and Danie Tyson teamed for a block at the pin to end the set.
Set 3: Marshall never trailed and seemed ready to go ahead after taking a 24-19 lead in the set. Matthews and Mackenzie McGuire traded kills for the next four points to get within one. Ainsley Guse tied it with a solo block and Soerensen followed with a kill for Kent State's first lead. After a timeout, Guse and Soerensen combined on a block to complete the dramatic comeback.
Set 4: Despite trailing by five early, the Flashes led 15-13 at the media timeout. Marshall rallied to lead by as many as two points, but back-to-back kills by Haffner and Matthews evened it at 23-23. A service error followed, and the Thundering Herd recorded a kill to extend the contest.
Set 5: Tied 6-6, Matthews delivered a powerful swing to put Kent State in the lead and start a 5-0 run that included a pair of blocks by Soerensen and Tyson. The Thundering Herd were able to sideout, but Soerensen extended the lead back to five with a kill. Matthews recorded kills on the next three points for the win.
Up Next for the Flashes
Kent State will finish non-conference play with a pair of matches next week. The Golden Flashes will host Cleveland State at the M.A.C. Center on Thursday, Sept. 15 and then travel to Youngstown State on Friday, Sept. 16.
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