BOONE, N.C. — Missouri State took the final two sets at Appalachian State Friday afternoon to claim a season-opening volleyball victory over the Mountaineers inside the Holmes Convocation Center.
Led by 29 kills on .352 hitting from senior All-American Lily Johnson, the Bears won by set scores of 25-23, 20-25, 22-25, 25-15 and 15-13. Johnson climbed three spots on the Missouri Valley Conference career kills list to fifth place with 1,748, set the league’s career record for total attacks with 4,976, and tied Michelle Witzke’s MSU record with her 96th career match of 10 or more kills. That mark is also believed to be the MVC record, though not all league schools have that particular statistic available.
Lynsey Wright followed with 13 kills and a team-high five blocks, and Ashley Ophoven hit .381 with 11 kills. Daniele Messa’s 53 assists were one shy of her career best, and five Bears had at least 11 digs, led by Brianne Dixon’s 15.
The Bears trailed 14-13 in the first set before Johnson had a kill and a block during a 3-0 run for a lead the Bears would not relinquish. Ophoven’s kill made it 21-17, but App State rallied for a 23-22 deficit to force an MSU timeout. Johnson’s ninth and 10th kills finished off the win, as the senior hit .556 in the set and the Bears had 20 kills on .375 hitting as a team.
The Mountaineers used a 7-0 run to lead 14-9 in the second set, and fended off an MSU comeback attempt with a 4-0 run after the Bears closed to 17-16 to even the match at one set apiece. The third set featured 13 ties and six lead changes, the last of which occurred during a 5-0 run that gave App State a 24-21 lead it would convert into a set victory two points later.
Wright had two blocks and a kill in a 4-0 run for an early 7-3 Missouri State lead in the fourth set, and the Mountaineers countered with an 8-2 run for an 11-9 advantage. The Bears trailed 12-11 when they turned the set around, putting together a 6-0 run to lead 17-12 and closing on a 5-0 run spurt, all while hitting .343 in the period compared to .026 for App State.
Missouri State controlled the early portion of the fifth set before the home team forced a 9-9 tie. Johnson answered with two kills and paired with Laynie Dake for a block and a 12-9 advantage. The scrappy Mountaineers countered with a 4-0 run to lead 13-12, Johnson tied the set with a kill and Messa served an ace to earn set point. Johnson and Dake then teamed up again for the winning block.
MSU held leads of 65-63 in kills and 8-4 in blocks, and hit .243 compared to .191 for App State. The Mountaineers finished with 75 digs, while the Bears had 69.
The Bears head to Raleigh, N.C., for Saturday matches against No. 8 Kansas at 9:30 a.m. and North Carolina State at 2:30 p.m.
