The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
5-6,0-0MAC
Cleveland State
6-5,0-0Horizon
Akron Drops Match 3-2 to Vikings
September 15 | Women's Volleyball
AKRON, OH --The Akron volleyball team lost in five sets (23-25, 25-21,18-25, 25-16, 8-15) to the Cleveland State Vikings Friday at home at James A Rhodes Arena in a back and forth battle.
The non-conference loss moved Akron to 5-6 on the season.
The Zips were led by a double-double from Faith Johnson, who registered 15 kills and 12 digs on the day. Ellen Kinnaird also added 12 kills to help the offense. Eliska Vytiskova also pitched in with five aces in the contest. On the defensive end, Vanessa Del Real chipped in for with 19 digs to go with three blocks from Vytiskova.
Game Notes
» Akron had three players in double figures in digs and three players in double figures in kills.
» Eliska Vytiskova had a match-high five aces in the loss.
» Faith Johnson registered a double-double with 15 kills and 12 digs
» Akron never trailed on the way to winning the fourth set 25-16.
» Faith Johnson had a team-high 15 kills for Akron.
» Akron got a team-high 19 digs from Vanessa Del Real.
» Akron attackers were helped by a match-high 51 assists from Eliska Vytiskova.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Zips found themselves in an early deficit, dropping a nail-biter first set 25-23. Cleveland State grabbed the advantage for good at 20-19 in a set that was tied up 10 times before the Vikings took over in the second half of the stanza.
SET 2 | Akron evened the match at 1-1 following a 25-21 victory in the second set. The Zips grabbed control of the set lead early on at 2-1 and never looked back. Akron led by as many as six points at 22-16 before finishing off the set, collecting 16 kills in the set. The Akron offense also got a boost from four aces in the stanza.
SET 3 | Cleveland State responded to win set number three, putting Akron in a two sets to one hole. The Zips dropped a tough set 25-18. Akron trailed by as many as nine points as Cleveland State grabbed the advantage for good at 2-1 in a set that was knotted up just once before the Vikings took over the lead.
SET 4 | Akron then responded to win the fourth set 25-16 to force a fifth set. The Zips scored first and never trailed in the set to earn the victory. Akron opened up as much as a 10 point lead at 23-13 before closing out the stanza, collecting 19 kills along the way.
SET 5 | Akron came up short in a back-and-forth match, winning the second and fourth sets, but losing the first, third and fifth, which they dropped by the score of 15-8, to fall in the match. The Zips trailed by as many as seven points before dropping the fifth set.
Up Next
The Zips will begin MAC competition as they travel to Athens, Ohio to take on Ohio University. On Friday September 22 the match will start at 7 p.m. while Saturday's match will be at 4 p.m.
