Box Score

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Three Salukis notched double-digit kills as the Southern Illinois volleyball team took a 3-0 sweep over the University of Evansville on Friday evening. 
 
Hannah Wilson recorded a team-high 12 kills to lead UE (7-13, 2-5 MVC) while SIU (15-3, 5-2 MVC) was led by Alysia Mayes, who led everyone with 16 kills.  Jessica Whitehead notched 12 while Laura Thole had ten.
 
Southern Illinois opened up its dominant night with a 25-10 win in the first set.  Evansville scored the first two points as Hannah Wilson assisted on a block before recording a kill to give UE the early advantage.  The Salukis quickly fought back and with the score tied at 4-4, SIU scored five-straight points as Jessica Whitehead had a pair of kills.
 
An error by SIU ended the run, but another run, this one a 6-1 stretch, saw Southern Illinois go up by a 15-6 margin.  The lead grew from there as SIU would take the 15-point win as Alysia Mayes led the way with eight kills.
 
Wilson helped UE start the second stanza with a point, but a quick 5-1 run got Southern Illinois back in its groove.  The frame quickly got out of reach for UE as the Salukis went up 13-5 before extending it to take the 25-15 win.  Mayes recorded five more kills in the second set while Wilson led the way for UE with six kills of her own in the second game. 
 
Evansville kept it closer in the third set, but SIU completed the sweep with a 25-18 win in set number three.  With the scored tied at 2-2, the Salukis scored the next two points and would never look back.  An error later by UE made it 17-10 in favor of the Salukis and they would hang on at the end for the same 7-point margin.
 
SIU’s largest advantage came on the offensive end as they hit .441 while UE hit .075 on the night.  The Salukis also limited Ashley Ring to five kills, her lowest output of the season.
 
The Aces will be back on the road next weekend as they will take on Northern Iowa on Friday evening before traveling to Bradley on Saturday.