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POST-MATCH INTERVIEW
MOREHEAD, Ky. – The Morehead State volleyball program is finally headed to the NCAA Tournament.
Top-seeded MSU defeated UT Martin 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 26-24) Saturday night in the finale of the 2011 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament at Wetherby Gym.
The win gives Morehead State its third OVC tournament crown and first NCAA Tournament berth. The Eagles won conference tournament championships in 1987 and 1993 prior to the OVC’s automatic berth.
MSU improves to 26-6 overall, while UTM ends its campaign at 19-14.
“Anytime you have true competition, it’s not always the best team that wins, but I think tonight it was the best team that did win,” said head coach Jaime Gordon. “I think these young ladies were so focused all week. We set the scoreboard to 24-23 all week and focused on what we were going to do at that moment. This isn’t just about our team this year though. We had a lot of our alumni here today. This is also about all the Morehead State players who put in the hard work and laid a foundation over the years so this team could have a chance to enjoy success.”
Sophomore libero Leslie Schellhaas led a defensive effort that out-dug the Skyhawks 50-34. She totaled 19 digs and now owns the MSU single-season record with 614. Junior Ellie Roberson led the team with 14 kills, and redshirt sophomore Aryn Bohannon notched 13 winners.
Junior setter Caitlin Clark narrowly missed a double-double with a match-high 37 assists and nine digs. Sophomore defender Lindsey Roth also compiled 10 digs. Redshirt senior Emma Keough had nine kills in her final home match.
Keough was named tournament Most Valuable Player, while Clark and Schellhaas each earned nods on the All-Tournament squad too.
“Coach (Jaime Gordon) has stressed all year about process, process, process and you can’t think about results because that’s when teams fall,” said Keough. “So, when we finally got to the last point, I think we were all kind of shocked that we actually did it. It’s a feeling you can't describe.”
MSU nearly had to wait at least an extra set to celebrate. The Eagles led 19-14 in the final set, but the Skyhawks rallied to take a 22-21 lead. UTM then found itself serving for set point to force a fourth frame. But junior Annie Gruenschlaeger swatted a kill to tie it at 24. Bohannon finished off the win with a pair of kills to set off the jubilation.
The Eagles set the tone for the victory by racing out an 8-3 in the first set and going on to win 25-15. MSU hit .333 in the opening stanza.
MSU led 20-16 in the second set but had to survive a UTM rally. The Skyhawks stormed back to take a 23-22 lead. But Roberson smashed a pair of winners and contributed on a block with redshirt freshman Laura McDermott to terminate the set with a 25-23 win.
UTM was led by Emily Keaton with 10 kills, while Britany Wilburn had four blocks.
The Eagles held UTM to just a .092 hitting percentage though, and MSU landed six service aces.
Morehead State will now face the Louisville Cardinals in a final regular-season match on Nov. 26 at 2 p.m. ET. The Eagles will find out their NCAA Tournament location and opponent on Nov. 27 at 6 p.m. during the tournament selection show on ESPNU. Details about a watch party will be forthcoming on
www.MSUEagles.com.
