Golden Eagles top Murray State on opening day at Stacheville Challenge
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Alayna Pierce and Jordan Karlen put on a show to wrap up the season’s opening day as the Tennessee Tech volleyball team took down Murray State in a 3-0 sweep Friday afternoon at the Stacheville Challenge at Austin Peay. Pierce ended the match with 15 kills and a .294 hitting percentage, while Karlen dished out 39 of the Golden Eagles’ 44 assists – six short of her three-set record against Southern Indiana in 2022.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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19 | 18 | 16 | 0 |
|
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25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
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22 | 20 | 20 | 0 |
|
|
25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Team Stats
Xavier
| Game Statistics | Xavier | Tennessee Tech |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | 0.226 | 0.021 |
| Blocks | 11 | 4 |
| Digs | 37 | 36 |
| Aces | 4 | 3 |
Murray State
| Game Statistics | Tennessee Tech | Murray State |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | 0.286 | 0.171 |
| Blocks | 9 | 5 |
| Digs | 46 | 46 |
| Aces | 8 | 2 |
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Athletics Media Relations
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Alayna Pierce and Jordan Karlen put on a show to wrap up the season's opening day as the Tennessee Tech volleyball team took down Murray State in a 3-0 sweep Friday afternoon at the Stacheville Challenge at Austin Peay.
Pierce ended the match with 15 kills and a .294 hitting percentage, while Karlen dished out 39 of the Golden Eagles' 44 assists – six short of her three-set record against Southern Indiana in 2022.
The Golden Eagles completed the sweep with 25-22, 25-20 and 25-20 set scores.
Tech (1-1) completes their weekend in Clarksville on Saturday as it takes on Austin Peay at 2 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
The Golden Eagles fell in three sets to Xavier in the day, falling 25-19. 25-18 and 25-16 to the Big East Musketeers. In the opener, Pierce had 10 kills, but Xavier squared in on her, forcing 12 attack errors.
Tech scored the first four points in the opening set against the Musketeers, but saw Xavier come storming back with eight ties and three lead changes. The trend continued in the second set with nine ties and four swaps, but Xavier went on a 10-4 run to close out set one and 12-5 in set two to gain the advantage. In the third set, trailing 13-12, the Musketeers outscored Tech on a 12-4 run to clinch the match.
Karlen had 24 assists in the day's opener, while the Golden Eagles were held to four total blocks – a single solo for Karlen and Tuva Falk and assisted stops by Jordyn Milhouse, Bella Powell, Falk and Pierce.
Fortunes were significantly better in the later match against their former Ohio Valley Conference foe, Murray State. In addition to Pierce's 15 kills, Audrey Berkebile and Powell nearly collected double-digit kills with nine each.
Tech had nine blocks on 18 assisted stops, led by Falk with five, Powell and Milhouse with four each.
In the first set, with the score squared at 17, Tech forced back-to-back attack errors – the latter on a Falk and Powell combo on the block. Milhouse, Powell and Berkebile were able to get kills to close out a 8-5 Tech series to claim the first set.
The second and third sets saw the Golden Eagles lead almost wire to wire with one tie in the second, two ties in the third and zero lead changes. Tech led by as many as six points and the Racers cut it back within four late, but it wasn't enough to recover. The Golden Eagles climbed out to a 10-3 lead to open set three and led by as many as eight before the Racers rallied back within four before an assisted block by Powell and Falk clinched the match.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Athletics Media Relations
