CONWAY, Ark. – The University of Central Arkansas volleyball team fell in four sets to Eastern Kentucky. The Loss dropped UCA to 7-18 overall with a 1-12 ASUN record.
Caylan Koons started off the action with a service ace to give UCA the very early 1-0 advantage. However, the Colonels quickly jumped out to an 8-4 lead, which snowballed into a 12-6 lead. Soon after, UCA took a chunk out of the Colonel's lead with a 6-1 run to make it 16-14. The key run of the opening set was a 6-1 run by the Colonels with the score at 19-17 to close out the Sugar Bears, 25-18.
UCA responded well after being competitive in the opening set, tying things at 8 all early. The Sugar Bears then went on a huge run, scoring four in a row to take a 12-10 lead, then a 7-0 run to take a crucial 19-11 lead. The Colonels slowly chipped away, but were on the brink of dropping the set at 24-19. EKU then took five straight points to tie it at 24. Laci Bohannan dug deep and hit on two straight kills to help the Sugar Bears take the second set, 26-24.
Neither team could get separation early on in the third set. The Sugar Bears jumped to a 13-10 lead, but the Colonels turned right around and got a 16-15 lead. After that, EKU ran off a huge 5-0 lead with the score tied at 16, which would prove to be crucial. A 3-0 run would help UCA cut into the lead a little bit, but the Colonels closed things out to take the third set, 25-21.
The fourth set was about as back-and-forth as it gets, at least early on, with the greatest bit of separation being a 3-0 run by EKU to make it 8-4. Whenever the Colonels found some wiggle room, the Sugar Bears answered back. With the Colonels leading 20-17, UCA climbed back in the match with three straight points capped off by a kill by Koons. The Colonels, however, scored five of six to win the match, 25-21.
Bohannan once again led the team in kills with 13, while also totaling 12 digs and an ace. Mackenzie Vernon pitched in 11 kills as well as four digs. Koons led the team with 40 assists and also put up 12 digs, three blocks, and an ace. Alexis McDaniel once again led the team in digs with 19.
UCA will host Bellarmine on Sunday, November 5th at 1:00 p.m. for senior day as the team honors Macy Blackburn, April Conant, Lexie Gregory, and Charleston Tidwell. The match will be streamed on ESPN+ and fans can keep up with the match on Twitter/X at @UCAVball.
