Griffins Take Down Beavers In The SLIAC Game of the Week

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—The Fontbonne University women's volleyball team won its third match in its last four on Wednesday night after defeating Blackburn in four sets (25-16, 25-14, 22-25, 25-16).

The Griffins (4-7; 3-4 SLIAC), totaled an impressive 51 kills, a season-high .302 hitting percentage and 45 digs. Kristina Eason stood out for FBU with her team-high 10 kills, .320 hitting percentage and 11 digs.

Emma Seiz and Victoria Curtice contributed eight kills each, while Megan McKenzie and Abby Grumich added seven a piece. Grumich also handed out a team-high 20 assists.

Blackburn (4-9; 2-5 SLIAC), finished with 38 kills, but committed 20 errors for a .158 hitting percentage. Kaitlyn Wiegand led the Beavers with a match-high 11 kills and .417 hitting percentage. The duo of Kendall Burleyson and Jensen Ballinger combined for 29 of the 32 assists, while Alexis Dick led them with 13 digs.

In the first set, it was Fontbonne jumping out to a 13-5 lead on Eason's service ace. The Beavers answered though with a 6-0 run to cut it down to 14-11 on Wiegand's kill.

Later, a Griffins service error made it an 18-15 game, but FBU closed out strong on a 7-1 run to take the opener, 25-16. Fontbonne played a near perfect first set with its 15 kills and .448 hitting percentage.

It was more of the same in the second with the Griffins again taking a commanding 13-4 lead after Blackburn's attack error. They stretched it out to 21-13 lead on Conner Gray's kill and there was no looking back with FBU taking the second, 25-14.

Thing changed in the third set with the Beavers needing a win to stay alive. This time around, Blackburn jumped out ahead at 14-8 on Wiegand's kill. They continued to lead 19-12, until FBU rattled off a 7-0 run, capped off by Gray's kill to make it 19-18.

After a timeout, the Beavers gathered themselves and closed out the set on a 6-4 run with Wiegand slamming home the kill to give them a 25-22 win, and force a fourth set.

In the fourth, FBU got back out ahead at 11-7 on a Beavers service error. They stretched it out to 18-11 after a Blackburn attack error and they cruised to victory taking the finale, 25-16. Fontbonne saved its best set for last, recording a match-high 16 kills and .464 hitting percentage.

The Griffins will be right back at it tomorrow night when they'll take on rival Webster, who currently is unbeaten in conference play. First-serve goes up at 7 p.m.

Fans make sure to stay updated on fontbonnegriffins.com throughout the year for full updates and recaps on the women's volleyball team.