THIRD SET APSU COMEBACK SETS TONE IN TOUGH 3-1 SETBACK FOR UT MARTIN VOLLEYBALL

Saturday, October 5

Clarksville, Tenn.

2 p.m.

UT Martin

5-13

Austin Peay

5-12

UT Martin

Austin Peay

THIRD SET APSU COMEBACK SETS TONE IN TOUGH 3-1 SETBACK FOR UT MARTIN VOLLEYBALL

10/5/2019 6:19:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score PDF

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball team was on the verge of a big Ohio Valley Conference road win today but fell victim to an unrelenting comeback in a four-set loss to Austin Peay (23-25, 25-17, 20-25, 21-25).

The Governors took the first set but the Skyhawks recovered by hitting an even .400 (18 kills against just four errors) in 35 swings on their way to a win in the second stanza. UT Martin then began the third set on an 8-0 run but Austin Peay was able to come from behind and swing the momentum before winning the fourth and final set.

Gintare Mackeviciute slammed down a match-high 15 kills on a blazing .500 hitting percentage today, adding a match-high five blocks to lead the Skyhawks. Kenzie Hinshaw (match-best 45 assists, 10 digs), Addison Conley (11 kills) and Jessica Reynolds (10 kills) additionally stood out offensively while Lucy Kaufman established a new career-high in digs (18) for the second time in as many days.

Things got started on the right foot as Mackeviciute and Logan Wallick opened the first set with back-to-back kills. Wallick followed with two more quick kills but the Governors pieced together a 14-3 run. UT Martin struck back with nine of 11 points during one stretch as Mackeviciute was responsible for three kills during that surge. The Skyhawks closed to within one point on three different occasions late (21-20, 23-22, 24-23) but could not break through as Austin Peay took the 1-0 lead.

The second stanza included seven tie scores as Conley had the hot hand early for UT Martin. The sophomore out of London, Ohio accounted for each of the first three Skyhawk points via kills while Karen Scanlon followed with back-to-back kills for UT Martin. Both sides swapped blows before Conley went on a personal 3-0 run (kill, two service aces) to push the Skyhawks ahead 13-9. UT Martin would eventually stretch its lead out to nine points (24-15) after an assisted block by Scanlon and Justine Walker before evening the match at 1-all.

The Skyhawks' aforementioned 8-0 run to start the third set featured two service aces and two assists from Hinshaw. A Mackeviciute kill kept UT Martin's lead at eight points (13-5) but the Governors used a 13-3 run to take their first lead of the set. An Austin Peay service error and a kill by Mackeviciute evened the score at 19-19 but the Governors were able to end the set with six of the final seven points.

Conley provided a kill for the Skyhawks' first point of the fourth set but Austin Peay tacked on a 6-0 run to claim the early advantage. Moments later, Reynolds came through with a pair of kills during a 5-0 UT Martin run that whittled its deficit to 9-8. However, the Governors immediately scored 11 of the next 13 points and soon had set point at 24-15. The Skyhawks fought off elimination with six straight points before Austin Peay took the set by a 25-21 margin.

UT Martin now kicks off a season-long five-match homestand next weekend, taking on OVC rivals SIUE and Eastern Illinois on Oct. 11 and Oct. 12, respectively.