JOPLIN, Mo. - The William Jewell volleyball team rallied on day two of the Missouri Southern Invitational to take down both opponents and finish the weekend 2-2. The Cardinals swept Southwestern Oklahoma in three sets before grabbing a come-from-behind win over the hosts in five. 

JEWELL 3, SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA 0

• Leading by one in the opener, the Cardinals went on a 10-6 run to go on top by five after three straight kills. The Bulldogs got within one late in the set but two kills from Bella LaPorta and a SWOSU error to win 25-20. 
• Jewell took an 18-13 lead midway through set two only to see the Bulldogs go on a 6-0 run and go in front by one. The Cardinals won six of the final eight points to on top by two sets. 
• SWOSU broke out to an 11-4 lead early in the third and held the advantage for much of the frame until the Cards rallied. A 12-3 run, led by three aces from LaPorta and three kills from Tatum Ernt pushed Jewell back in front, 21-20. It took extra points but a Katy Garrison kills capped the set 27-25 in favor of the Cardinals.   

KEY STATS

• The Cardinals hit .243 with 50 kills, compared to just 38 by SWOSU. 
• LaPorta posted 20 kills, 12 digs and four aces to lead the Cardinals. 
• Haidan Baade added a match-high 15 digs while Samantha Thompson led with 22 aces with Drew Baxter adding 21. 

 

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JEWELL 3, MISSOURI SOUTHERN 2

• The Cardinals fell into an early 20-12 hole in the first set against the hosts and could not recover, falling 25-17. 
• Jewell continued to struggle offensively, hitting just .061 in the second set, dropping the frame 25-15. 
• In the third set, the Cardinals used a 9-4 run, led by two kills apiece from Garrison and LaPorta to go in front, 15-14. Tied at 22 late, the Lions committed two errors followed by a Ernt kill to take the third. 
• Trailing 10-7 early in the fourth, the Cardinals took advantage of five Missouri Southern errors and got back-to-back kills from LaPorta and Alex Dvorak to jump out to a 19-15 advantage. Garrison and LaPorta again teamed up late for four more points to win 25-22 and force a deciding fifth set. 
• The Cardinals jumped out to an 8-1 lead in the finale, behind three kills and a block from Garrison, and looked as they might roll to the win. MSSU rallied, however, to tie the set at 13. The teams traded the next 11 points until a kill from LaPorta followed by a service ace by Kaci Behrens finally ended the match 21-19 in the fith. 

KEY STATS

• The Cardinals posted 10 aces and 12 blocks, led by eight from the freshman Dvorak. 
• LaPorta finished with 21 kills, four aces and 10 digs for her third 20-plus kill performance of the weekend. 
• Garrison added 15 kills and a career high seven blocks while Samantha Thompson dished out 32 assists.  

UP NEXT
Jewell heads east next weekend to take on four opponents at the Kentucky Wesleyan Invite.