RUSTON, LA – The Iona University Volleyball team faced the Little Rock Trojans in its second game of the Jambalaya Jam. Little Rock opened with an 18-2 run to take the first set, 25-5, the Trojans used an early 9-2 run to secure the second set, 25-15. The Gaels battled in the third set, cutting the Trojan lead with a late 7-3 run, but Little Rock held on to take the final set, 25-18, and secure the match.
THE RUNDOWN: LITTLE ROCK: 3, Iona: 0
SET 1: The Maroon & Gold's first point of the set came off a Trojan attack error. Senior
Ezzie Thompson recorded the first kill of the match, but the Trojans came out firing as they opened the match on an 18-2 run. The early surge lifted Little Rock to a first-set victory, as the Trojans took the opening set, 25-5.
SET 2: The Gaels utilized a couple of Trojan errors to record their first points of the set, with Little Rock holding a 3-2 lead. After the Trojans' second error, they responded by scoring six consecutive points to build a 9-3 advantage. Following a few back-and-forth rallies, the score stood at 11-3, but the Maroon & Gold responded with kills from junior
Mija Jegers, junior
Kari Smith, and sophomore
Cassandra Rohan to cut into the Little Rock lead, making it 13-6. Both programs continued to trade points throughout the remainder of the set, but the Trojans gradually extended their advantage and took the second set, 25-15.
SET 3: The Trojans continued their strong play in the third set, opening with four consecutive points. The Gaels responded with a Little Rock attack error and a kill from junior
Katherine Ferng to make the score 7-4. After the teams traded points over the next several rallies, the Trojans used a 4-0 run to push their lead to seven at 12-5. The Maroon & Gold answered with two consecutive points, coming off a service error and a service ace from senior
Buse Tinaz, to cut the deficit to five. With the score at 15-10, the Trojans scored four straight points to extend their lead to nine. The Gaels continued to battle, putting together a 7-3 run highlighted by two kills from Tinaz, two kills from Smith, and a kill from Jegers. The run cut the Trojan lead to five with the score at 22-17, but the late push was not enough as Little Rock closed out the set, 25-18, to sweep Iona.
IONA Performers
- Jegers had a team-high seven kills. Smith was right behind with six.
- Junior Jaylyn Simon was the assist leader with 20 assists.
- Junior Avery Gaume was the digs leader with 14 and Jegers was second in digs with 11.
THE OPPONENT
- Avery Fearnley led the Trojans in kills with 14.
- Lily King was the leader in assists with 16 and Kaylee Smith was right behind with 14 assists.
- Lorena Keselj recorded four service aces.
- Skyler Perez was the leader in digs with 13.
UP NEXT
The Maroon and Gold return to action tomorrow at Noon as they face off against Houston Christian in their final game of the Jambalaya Jam.
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