CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay State University’s volleyball battled out of the gate in its home opener but could not keep pace with No. 19 Western Kentucky in a three-set loss (21-25, 14-25, 14-25), Tuesday night at the Dunn Center.
Austin Peay (2-2) was able to keep pace in a wide open offensive first set that saw the teams combine for 36 kills. The Governors offense was the cleaner side, with just two attack errors against 16 kills, but the Hilltoppers compensated with a 21-kill effort. APSU fought to within a two points at 23-21, but could not close the gap. WKU got back-to-back kills from Sydney Engle and Jessica Lucas to seal the win.
Western Kentucky (4-0) used its service game to disrupt the Austin Peay offense in a pair of wire-to-wire wins to clinch the match. While WKU didn’t register many aces, the damage of its serving showed offensively as the Govs were held to .086 hitting and nine kills in the second set followed by a .065 attack percentage and eight kills in the third frame.
The Governors finished the match with 32 kills, junior outside hitter Christina White leading the effort with a 10-kill, one-error outing that saw her hit .429. Junior Ashley Slay finished with seven kills and five blocks.
Alyssa Cavanaugh’s 14-kill performance off the bench led Western Kentucky’s 54-kill effort. Rachel Anderson and Engle each added 10 kills.
Austin Peay begins a six-match, 14-day road trip when it travels to Troy, Alabama for the Troy Invitational, Friday-Saturday. The Govs will face New Mexico State, Southern and Valparaiso in the three-match tourney.