INDIANAPOLIS – The IUPUI volleyball team (8-14, 4-3) pushed themselves to their first winning record in Summit League play of the season, knocking off Oral Roberts (11-10, 3-4) in four sets (25-20, 27-25, 13-25, 25-23) Friday (Oct. 14), beginning their home stretch of matches on a winning note.
Receiving a career-effort from
Gabby Fisher, IUPUI put up one of its best offensive showings of the season, hitting .311 as a team. Fisher posted a career-high 23 kills in the match on a career-best .367 clip, also adding 11 digs in a double-double effort. She tacked on three aces as well to lead the team. Three Jags posted double-digit kills with at least a .340 attack percentage, as Fisher,
Kori Waelbroeck and
Elizabeth Scott all accomplished the feat. Waelbroeck and Scott each totaled 11 kills in the match. The 11 marked a career-high for Scott.
Abby Boatman was fantastic at the net, establishing career-highs in solo blocks (3), block assists (7), and total blocks (10). Scott and Waelbroeck each added three block assists, while
Alexis Mapes and
Logan Walling each tallied two. Mapes also added 49 assists in the match.
Unofficially titled the
Gabby Fisher Show, IUPUI found a way to fluster Oral Roberts early in the first set. Down by one, the Jags began a 4-0 run, thanks in part to a Fisher kill and an ace, to take a 16-13 lead. The Jags would pick up three kills over the next seven points, pushing the score to 20-16. Led by Fisher who added two more kills down the stretch, the Jags would wrap up the set on a service ace by Fisher, 25-20.
After burning a timeout in the early going, the Jags fought back from a three-point deficit to make it 13-14. The teams would push it to 15-16, before Oral Roberts ran off a 3-1 run to gain a comfortable edge. Deep into the action, IUPUI would show life down by three points, getting a kill from Fisher and an emphatic block by Walling and Waelbroeck to narrow the gap to one. At 22-23, Waelbroeck would unleash a towering shot to tie the affair, tightening the final points. After dropping the next point, Waelbroeck would again connect for a furious kill, tying it once again. Pushing it to 25-25, the Jags would do what they do best, establishing the block and thwarting the opposing attack. Scott and Boatman would give the Jags the lead on a block, followed by a solo block by Boatman to take the set, 27-25.
The third set quickly turned ugly, as the Jags found themselves trailing early after a flurry of services aces by the Golden Eagles. After four aces and two timeouts, the Jags were facing a 4-12 deficit. They'd push it to 7-14, thanks in part to three Jag kills. All seven of IUPUI's early points came on kills. The run ended when the Jags picked up a solo block by Boatman, making it 8-18 at the time. A 4-1 run by the Golden Eagles would stretch the deficit to 13, making it 9-22. ORU would eventually take the set, 13-25.
Looking to bounce back after being thwarted in the third set, a Scott kill put the Jags on top early, 7-5. A 5-0 run by the Golden Eagles quickly erased the lead, and put IUPUI in a small hole, 7-10. Three kills and two errors made up the run by ORU. The Jags would right the ship however, battling back on a pair of Boatman kills to even the score, 13-13. Pushing it to 19-19, Fisher would rifle a kill to put the Jags in front and force a Golden Eagles' timeout. Boatman would post back-to-back blocks on IUPUI points, pushing the Jags ahead, 22-20. Waelbroeck would knock a pair of kills for the final Jaguar points, giving them the set and the match, 25-23.
The Jags will return to the court Tuesday (Oct. 18) as they host Fort Wayne at 7 p.m. EST for a mid-week Indiana showdown. The match will be video streamed online.
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