WILMORE, Ky. — The Asbury University volleyball team took down Rio Grande in five sets at the Luce Center on Friday night. The Eagles were victorious (25-19, 25-18, 25-22, 25-13,15-12).

The Eagles won the first two sets; however, Rio stepped up and came out stronger than the Eagles anticipated in set three. AU trailed and tried to close the gap by winning seven points. Unfortunately, it was too late. Rio took set three due to an Asbury error. 

The fourth set marked a competitive matchup for the Eagles when Rio took an 18-10 lead. Later on, AU came back to tie it at 23-23 but came up short due to attacking errors. 

The fifth set was a thrilling back-and-fourth battle for both squads. After being tied 9-9, the Eagles built a 14-12 lead and prevailed in the final point to preserve the win due to an attacking error from Rio.

Quote from Madi Bryant:

"We've been working hard at practice to push each other to be better, but also we gave it our all this game and played for one another." 

Quote from Coach Stowe:

"Played very well the first two sets. In the second set, we played some of the best volleyball we've played all season long. Emma Ingalls was a force up at the net! In the third and fourth sets, we just started playing too late. It's hard to spot a team 7-8 points and then expect to win. I am proud of the way they finished tonight. We needed a win, and they delivered."


Up Next:
Asbury is back in action tomorrow, Oct. 1, at 3 PM to take on West Virginia Tech on Senior Day.