DENVER – Omaha volleyball stared down a pair of match points and rallied for a five set Summit League win at Denver, 21-25, 25-19, 22-25, 30-28, 15-10.
Graduate student McKenna Ruch delivered a season-high 21 kills at a stellar kill rate of .515, completing the double-double with ten blocks, including two solo blocks. Junior Kali Jurgensmeier delivered 17 kills, two digs and nine block assists as the Mavericks (7-10, 5-1) won to remain a game back of league-leading South Dakota State.
For the third straight meeting the teams played to five sets, the longest match in Summit League play for the Mavericks this season. The Mavericks are 2-4 in five set matches on the campaign.
Omaha couldn’t get into a groove in the opening set, trailing from the outset until leading briefly midway through the game at 16-15 on sophomore Amanda Hardt’s kill. But the Pioneers (7-9, 2-4) outhit the Mavericks .382 to .300 in the set to take the opener 25-21.
In the second set, an early three point run, keyed by combo blocks from sophomore Emily Huss (4 k, 9 ba) and senior Shayla McCormick (7 k, 11 digs) followed by a Jurgensmeier-Ruch joint denial, gave the Mavericks the lead. Ruch delivered a block and kill for back to back points as the Mavericks pushed the lead to 14-11, their largest of the match at that point. An Amanda Hardt kill assisted by McCormick extended that lead to five points at 18-13. Ruch and Hardt (10 k, 2 b, 3 digs) combined once again for the block that sealed the second set win, 25-19.
The third game started with back and forth play before a sliding dig from freshman Julia Owens (26 assists, 2 aces, 7 digs) to McCormick, who set for Hardt’s block, to spark a run. Sophomore Ivy Leuck’s ace gave the Mavericks a 12-8 lead. Denver rallied and reeled off the final three points of the set to break a tie and claim the 25-22 set win.
In the fourth set, Omaha again appeared in control, taking an early five point lead on McCormick’s kill, assisted by Owens. But Denver reeled off seven straight points – the longest run for either team in the match – before three powerful kills by graduate student Ruch raised the attack up front. Owens’ ace, the first for Omaha in the set, tied the match at 19-19. Hardt’s fierce center left solo block helped the Mavericks win four straight points of their own. Omaha survived two match points, and with the set tied at 28-28, Jurgensmeier’s kill followed by McCormick’s big right hand closed out the 30-28 fourth set win for Omaha.
In the decisive fifth set, Ruch’s right hand hammer gave the Mavericks an early four point edge they would never relinquish en route to the 15-10 closing set.
The Mavericks return home for the next two matches against Summit League foes Oral Roberts (10/19) and Kansas City (10/22). Omaha has not dropped a set in Summit League matches at Baxter Arena this season.
The Mavericks are alone in second place in the Summit League standings, just back of unbeaten South Dakota State (16-0, 6-0).
UNO outlasts Denver in five
