FORT SMITH, Ark. -- No. 24 Washburn finished out its regular season with a four-set win on the road over Arkansas-Fort Smith in the first-ever conference battle between the two teams. The Ichabods will await their seeding in the MIAA Tournament after the KPI Rankings are calculated at the conclusion of all matches around the conference.
Washburn (20-6, 11-5 MIAA) got out to a fast start, winning 25-16 in the first set. The second set went long, and ended with the Lions (14-14, 6-10 MIAA) evening up the match. The visiting Ichabods jumped out to early leads in each of the next two sets, winning both 25-18 and 25-22.
A kill by Jalyn Stevenson began the match and three points later Corinna McMullen served an ace forcing a timeout by Arkansas-Fort Smith as they trailed 4-0. Shortly after, a 5-0 run ending with another ace, this time via Taylor Rottinghaus, made it a 10-2 set. Both sides traded points until the Lions got a rally going, winning four in a row to cut the lead to three at 18-15. The Ichabods finished out the set winning seven of the final eight points, with Bella Limback delivering the final blow on a pass from Sydney Conner.
In the second set the Lions got off to a quicker start, jumping ahead 6-3. Washburn tied the set up at seven on a kill by Natalie Hedlund and each side traded the lead back-and-forth until a 6-1 run by the Ichabods created separation making it 16-12. Arkansas-Fort Smith battled back, winning six of seven points to tie things up at 19.
Washburn was the first to reach set point after an ace from McMullen. They reached set point twice, each time the Lions had an answer. On Fort Smith's second time reaching set point they were able to put the set away with two straight kills, ending it at 30-28.
The Ichabod offense got right back on track in the third, starting the set with a kill by Dvorak which sparked a 6-0 run. On the defensive end Dvorak and Hedlund combined for a block to finish off a 4-0 stretch that lets the score at 18-10. The Lions were able to pull within five but down the stretch the Washburn offense carried the way as they hit .552 as a team with 16 kills and no errors in the 25-18 victory.
Both sides traded the first 16 points of the fourth set. Stevenson knocked down a kill to tie the match at nine and was the first point in a four-point burst for the Ichabods. Arkansas-Fort Smith pulled back within one but a Washburn responded with six in a row, finished off by two straight from Dvorak. The lead was at seven until the Lions reeled off five in a row late but it was too little too late as Taryn Pridgett finished off the match with the final two kills.
After starting slow, the Ichabods finished the match hitting .298 as a team with 67 kills. On the other end Arkansas-Fort Smith hit .212 with 63 kills and 25 errors. Washburn had an 83-76 advantage in digs and a 65-60 edge in assists for the match.
Four Ichabod hitters finished with double figure kills led by Taryn Pridgett and Alex Dvorak who each had 15 and hit over .300. Jalyn Stevenson had 13 and Natalie Hedlund finished with 11. Corinna McMullen had a double-double with 32 assists and 13 digs while Taylor Rottinghaus paced all players with 25 digs.
The Lions were led by Caelyn Gunn who had 16 kills and 15 digs for a double-double. Nyia Anderson also had one with 15 kills and 13 digs.
