OKLAHOMA CITY – The Mid-America Christian volleyball team lost a heart-breaking five-set match against Oklahoma Wesleyan before bouncing back with a three-set sweep over Southwestern (Kan.) in its home tri-match inside the Gaulke Activity Center on Wednesday.
 
Mid-America Christian vs. Oklahoma Wesleyan
SCORE

• Oklahoma Wesleyan 3, Mid-America Christian 2 (25-23, 25-27, 25-20, 20-25, 15-13)
  • Mid-America Christian (5-3)
  • Oklahoma Wesleyan (9-1)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Lena Stockhammer – 16 Kills, 22 Assists, 13 Digs, 2 Blocks
• Vanessa Moreira – 11 Kills, .407 ATK%, 8 Digs, 4 Blocks
• Casady McKinney – 27 Assists, 13 Digs, 2 Aces
• Miriam Nardi – 10 Kills, .269 ATK%, 4 Blocks
• Marlee Hunter – 25 Digs

MATCH NOTES

• OKWU closed out the match with a strong run, outscoring the Evangels 9-4 over the final half of set five to claim the 15-13 win.
• Both teams played strong on the defensive end, but Mid-America Christian out-hit Oklahoma Wesleyan with 63 kills on a .146 attack percentage while the Eagles tallied 57 kills on the exact same .146 rate.
• Despite MACU being slightly more effective in the attack, the Eagles were able to make up some points in blocking and serving as OKWU tallied 14 blocks to eight for the Evangels while the Eagles notched seven service aces to four errors while MACU tallied 10 aces and 10 errors.
• Lena Stockhammer finished the match with her first career double-double, turning in a team-high 16 kills to go with 22 assists and 13 digs.
• Casady McKinney also turned in her first double-double of her MACU career, dishing out a match-high 27 assists and 13 digs.
• Marlee Hunter recorded a career-high 25 digs in the defeat while Vanessa Moreira and Miriam Nardi led the blocking efforts with four blocks apiece.
• Overall, MACU had four players finish with double-digit kills: Lena Stockhammer (16), Vanessa Moreira (11), Lauryn Walters (11), Miriam Nardi (10).
• The loss to the Eagles was the second straight match MACU fell in five sets after their matchup 11 days ago in the MACU/USAO Cruisin' Classic on Aug. 20.

 
Mid-America Christian vs. Southwestern (Kan.)
SCORE

• Mid-America Christian 3, Southwestern 0 (25-12, 25-15, 25-21)
  • Mid-America Christian (6-3)
  • Southwestern (1-5)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Lauryn Walters – 11 Kills, .320 ATK%
• Miriam Nardi – 9 Kills, .529 ATK%, 7 Blocks
• Casady McKinney – 21 Assists, 7 Digs, 4 Aces
• Lena Stockhammer – 14 Assists, 12 Digs, 8 Kills
• Marlee Hunter – 16 Digs

MATCH NOTES

• Mid-America Christian smothered the Southwestern attack through the first two sets, holding the Moundbuilders to a negative hitting percentage with 10 kills and 11 attack errors on 72 attempts before SC recorded 11 kills on a .200 clip in set three.
• Overall, the Evangels more than doubled up Southwestern in the attack, tallying 44 kills on a .263 hitting clip while Southwestern's total ended at 21 kills on a .049 attack percentage.
• Lauryn Walters led the MACU attack with 11 kills on a .320 hitting clip.
• Miriam Nardi pieced together a stellar match both on the attack and on the defense, notching nine kills on a .529 hitting percentage while putting down a season-high seven blocks.
• Lena Stockhammer narrowly missed another triple-double with 14 assists, 12 digs and eight kills.
• Casady McKinney led the distribution efforts with 21 assists and seven digs to go with a career-high four service aces.
• Marlee Hunter once again led the defense with 16 digs and also finished with a 1.000 receive percentage on 13 attempts.
• The Evangels were particularly strong in serve receive, allowing only two aces on 50 attempts.
• The win over the Moundbuilders was MACU's first since picking up a three-set sweep in Winfield, Kan. back on Sept. 4, 2010.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will officially open Sooner Athletic Conference play this weekend as the Evangels will head to Wayland Baptist and Oklahoma Panhandle State. The Evangels will head to Plainview, Texas on Friday for a 7 p.m. match against the Pioneers.