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MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Emma Keough set the Morehead State career record for block assists, and Liz Schuler notched a season-high 17 kills and 14 digs while hitting .560 as the Eagle pair celebrated their senior day with a 3-0 sweep of visiting Murray State (25-17, 25-12, 25-23).
Morehead State improved to 22-6 overall and tied the 2010 team for school single season Ohio Valley Conference victories as they upped their conference mark to 17-1. Murray State dipped to 8-21 and 8-10 in the league.
Keough entered the match with 346 career block assists, needing just five to set the mark, and she finished with a season-high eight assisted blocks. She got the record-setting rejection on the final point of set two. Schuler meanwhile, made her first start of the year at outside hitter (the position she played her first two seasons at Morehead State), and the Racers had no defensive answer for the 5-foot-10 Louisville native. She smashed 17 kills with only three errors for a career-best .560 attack efficiency. She also led the Eagles in digs.
As a team, Morehead State hit .393 and totaled 23 more kills than the Racers (48-25). The Eagles also out-dug the Racers 41-22 and had 11 team blocks. Redshirt sophomore Aryn Bohannon had 11 kills and hit .421, and redshirt freshman Laura McDermott notched nine winners while hitting .353. Junior Annie Gruenschlaeger picked up five blocks and moved into third place in block assists at MSU with 276.
Caitlin Clark handed out 40 assists for the Eagles.
Murray State was led by Mary Cunningham with 10 kills via a .348 hitting day. The Racers were limited to a .075 team hitting percentage.
Morehead State came out and landed 17 kills in the opening set while hitting .314. The Eagles picked up the offensive tempo even more in the second frame, slamming down 17 kills but hitting .583 with just three total errors.
Murray State made it interesting in the third set. The Racers took a 23-22 lead after Cunningham's final kill of the match. But, consecutive kills from Gruenschlaeger and Schuler pushed the Eagles to match point. Sophomore Lindsey Roth's serve then ricocheted off the top of the net but fell in for an ace to end the match.
Morehead State wraps up the OVC regular season next weekend at Jacksonville State on Friday evening at 6 p.m. ET and at Tennessee Tech on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET.
