TOPEKA, Kan. --- The No. 16-ranked Washburn Ichabod volleyball team opened the 2017 season with a 1-1 start after dropping the opener to Arkansas Tech before bouncing back with a sweep against East Central in the first day of the Washburn Invitational presented by Topeka Capitol Plaza Hotel and Convention Center. The Ichabods will conclude the two-day event with Western State Colorado and Missouri-St. Louis at 11 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. respectively.
 
Arkansas Tech 3, #16 Washburn 1 (25-22, 22-25, 25-16, 25-19)
 The Golden Suns led for much of the opening set and claimed their largest lead at 14-9 behind a 5-2 run. Washburn responded with a 7-1 run pushing the score to 16-15 in its favor and forcing ATU to call a timeout. The Ichabods maintained an advantage as the score line moved 21-19 before Arkansas Tech registered five straight to move ahead 24-21. A Kelsey Gordon kill prolonged the first set but it was not enough as ATU took the set 25-22.
 
Washburn sprinted to a 6-1 advantage to start the second set. However, back-to-back errors by the Ichabods allowed ATU to string together five unanswered taking a 13-12 lead. The sides traded possessions down the stretch with neither team holding more than a three-point margin. Makayla Maxwell then gave WU a narrow 22-21 lead late before consecutive ATU errors closed out the frame (25-22) with Washburn tying the match 1-1.
 
The Ichabods fell behind early in the third and were unable to recover as the Golden Suns won the set 25-16 and took a 2-1 match lead.
 
The fourth set began in see-saw fashion until ATU took advantage of an Ichabod error to move out front, 7-6. Arkansas Tech then began to pull away as a 7-3 late gave the Golden Suns a 23-16 lead before capping the match with a 25-19 result.
 
Washburn struggled offensively as it hit .032. Maxwell had 10 kills, while Shayla Conner registered a double-double with 33 assists and 14 digs. The result was WU's first season opening defeat since 1997.
 
#16 Washburn 3, East Central 0 (26-24, 25-13, 25-14)
Despite being outhit .234 to .196 in the first set, the Ichabods held off a surging East Central team late to win the point with a 26-24 result. WU went up early leading by as much as seven after Maxwell kill gave it an 18-11 cushion. The Tigers cut into the margin behind a 7-2 run to narrow the Ichabod breathing room to 20-18. Consecutive ECU kills helped staved set point and tie the frame at 24, but an attack error and kill by Erica Montgomery secured the point.
 
Montgomery had seven kills in the opening set en route to finishing with a career-best performance of 12 while boosting a hitting percentage of .500.
 
The Ichabods cruised the rest of the way as they never trailed during the final two sets. Washburn opened the second with a 7-0 run before pushing the margin to double-digits. A service ace by late gave WU a 22-10 lead prior to claiming the set 25-13.
 
The third set saw the sides tied at 7-7 until an 11-1 run allowed the Ichabods to pull away before closing the set and match with a 25-14 tally.
 
Genna Berg's 10-kill outing gave the freshman 19 for the day, with Montgomery and Maxwell each closed with 14. Conner had 50 assists. Faith Rottinghaus posted 24 digs, while follow freshman Kelsey Gordon ended the day with seven blocks.