Junior outside hitter Sandora Sasaki broke her own program record for kills with 33 but the Emporia State volleyball team fell at #10 Nebraska-Kearney 25-9, 14-25, 25-23, 25-23 in Kearney, Neb. on Tuesday night. The Lopers were dominant in the first outhitting ESU .476 to -.071, but the Lady Hornets found their game in the second by hitting .324 to tie the match. Trailing 13-6 in the second, E-State mounted a huge comeback with an 11-0 run to take a 17-13 lead in the frame. The Lopers pulled even at 20-all before edging out the Hornets for a 2-1 lead. The fourth set was far closer with neither team enjoying more than a three point lead but, just like in the third, the Lopers found a way to score three of the last four points in the set to win the match. Sasaki has tallied double-digit kills in all 22 matches for the Lady Hornets this season, the most for an ESU player to start a season in program history, and has ripped off at least 18 kills in each of her last five matches and six of her last seven. Sasaki had 33 of Emporia State’s 50 kills and 76 of the team’s 144 attacks in the match while Brailee Bogle racked up 37 assists. Anakaren Chavez led the way with 14 digs for ESU. ESU falls to 11-11 and 5-9 in the league and returns to action on the road Friday at Missouri Western. First serve is set for 6:00 p.m.
Sasaki’s 33 Kills Not Enough in 3-1 Loss to #10 Lopers
Sandora Sasaki winds up for another kill. Courtesy ESU Athletics.
