WICHITA, Kan. — The Friends University Falcons opened Saturday's (Sept. 5) tri-match by defeating the Missouri Valley College Vikings 3-1 (21-25, 25-16, 25-21, 25-19) inside the Garvey Center.
Against MVC, Friends answered a first-set loss by winning the next three sets, including an 8-0 run in the third to reverse an 18-14 deficit into a 22-18 advantage.
Friends totaled 11 kills in the opening set, led by
Natalie Castillo's four, but Missouri Valley finished with 13 kills and won the set 25-21. The set was tied at 19 before the Vikings scored six of the final eight points, with Olivia Randolph and Sofia Centella each recording four kills for the visitors.
The Falcons won the second set 25-16, using a 7-0 run to turn an 11-9 deficit into a 16-11 lead.
Bailey Wilson served the final six points of that run and had an ace, while
Sofia Mekelburg led Friends with five kills.
Friends then used the big 8-0 spurt to take control of the third set and jump ahead in the match.
Sadie White had four kills in the third, and
Gabbie Taylor added three, including the final point in a 25-21 win.
Friends won the fourth set and finished the victory 25-19 after rallying from an early 9-6 deficit to lead 12-10, with
Daelyn McGregor's service ace accounting for the final point of that stretch. Taylor recorded eight kills in the set and later served four straight Friends points to stretch a 15-12 lead into a commanding seven-point edge.
Taylor finished with 14 kills, 12 digs and three blocks. Wilson recorded a team-high and career-best 23 digs and
Erin Cheatum posted a career-high seven total blocks, including two solo blocks.
Amber Ellis finished with 18 assists and 12 digs, with
Lynzee Neal adding a career-high 16 assists.
Mary Henry recorded 24 digs for the Vikings. Julia Brazil finished with 10 kills, 11 digs, two service aces and two blocks. Clarissa Dias totaled 24 assists, three service aces and five digs. Sofia Centella added seven kills and three blocks.
The Falcons then capped off the day with a 3-0 victory over the Randall University Saints (25-19, 25-12, 25-17).
The Falcons recorded 14 kills from six players and added three service aces to take the opening set 25-19.
Addison Fulton led the attack with five kills, while Taylor had four kills and an ace, and Ellis served two early aces during a four-point start.
Friends used a 14-kill set to pull away for a 25-12 win in the second set, led by four kills each from Mekelburg and Castillo and two service aces by Neal.
Nine service aces fueled the Falcons in the third set, led by six from Mekelburg in a close out 25-17 win. Friends also held a 12-7 edge in kills, with the key separation coming during a six-point service stretch that moved the set from 15-11 to 21-11.
Mekelburg added seven kills to go along with her six service aces for the Falcons. Fulton led Friends with nine kills and hit .412. Neal finished with 15 assists, eight digs, four aces and converted her lone attack. Ellis added a team-high 16 assists with five digs and two aces.
Briseida Acosta led the Saints with seven kills, 12 digs and four service aces. Aubree Rutledge distributed a team-leading 13 assists and Jordan Hardesty recorded five kills and eight digs.
The Falcons, now 5-6 on the season, will remain at home and host Haskell Indian Nations University Wednesday night (Sept. 9) at 7 pm.
