Spalding volleyball sees senior day success

Gabby Ellis | Defensive Specialist

By Press release submission

Oct 31, 2022

Spalding volleyball made sure to make senior Gabby Ellis had a successful senior day with a 3-1 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) win over Blackburn.

The Golden Eagles moved to 8-17 and 7-7 in the SLIAC with the 26-24, 20-25, 25-21, 25-23 victory. The Beavers left Derby City with a 5-21 overall mark and a 4-10 SLIAC record.

TURNING POINT

It seemed like the first set would be an easy win for Spalding after the home squad jumped out to a 9-2 start. Blackburn surged back into contention and eventually tied the game at 20-20 before taking a 24-21 lead. With the match point in play for the Beavers, the Golden Eagles, with help from an Abigail Ratts block and kill, went 5-0 to win the first set 26-24.

Set two was close from the start. Six ties paced the set with the final one coming at 14-14. Blackburn used an 8-0 run to move ahead 20-14. Back-to-back Spalding kills courtesy of Ratts and Jayda Branch, stopped the streak but BC held the momentum. The visiting team took set two by a score of 25-20.

The third frame was another close affair. The squads exchanged ties 11 times with the pattern running through the whole set. After the Beavers tied things at 21-all, the Golden Eagles sealed the frame with four-straight points. A kill from Ella Clark and two Gabby Eliis senior aces secured the 25-21 set victory.

Spalding jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the fourth frame thanks to a couple of Brianna Terpening service aces and some BC errors. Blackburn kept things interesting and took the lead late at the 19-17 mark. A 6-0 run after that point looked like it was going to seal the deal for the Golden Eagles but the Beavers stayed in it. In the end, an error by the visitors gave SU the 25-23 set and match win.

GOLDEN EAGLE NOTES