COLUMBIA, Ky. – Going into Friday's match against Oakland City (Ind.), junior
Luiza Goncalves needed just 16 assists to reach 1,000 for her Lindsey Wilson career. The Blue Raiders' setter not only made quick work of the spread but set a personal-best for a three-set match with 40 total assists to help Lindsey Wilson grind past the Mighty Oaks 3-0.
Fellow junior
Ola Wyrzykowska collected most of Goncalves' assists for a team-high 13 kills, while
Savanah Pippin also cracked in double-figures with 10 kills. Defensively,
Lara Danesi recorded a season-best 18 digs to go along with nine kills and three aces.
As a team, Lindsey Wilson finished with 11 service aces, the second-highest total of the season behind Thursday night's 14 at Boyce (Ky.).
The visitors grabbed an early 5-3 lead in the first set but three consecutive kills by
Elisa Burzio, Pippin, and Danesi fueled a three-point Blue Raider run to push them in front. Oakland City responded to reclaim the advantage, and the two sides proceeded to swap hits. Knotted at 14-14, Lindsey Wilson launched a 7-1 run to go ahead 21-15. The Oaks remained resilient, however, fighting off three set-points late before the Blue Raiders ultimately sealed a 25-23 win.
Oakland City led by as many as six points in the middle set. The Oaks found a rhythm offensively to take a 12-6 lead. Three straight kills from Pippin and Wyrzykowska, and a pair of aces by Goncalves pulled Lindsey Wilson back to tie the score at 13-13. Following a Oakland City timeout, the Oaks snatched their last lead of the set, as back-to-back kills by Burzio inched the Blue Raiders ahead for good on their way to another 25-23 set win.
A solid 8-3 start by the home team in the third frame put Lindsey Wilson in a comfortable position. Despite the visitors trimming the deficit down to one point, the Blue Raiders held firm to score nine of the final 11 points of the match.
All told, Lindsey Wilson hit .333 on the attack and with the win, extends the program's non-conference home winning streak to 49 matches.
The Blue Raiders conclude their three-day, three-match set at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday against Shawnee State (Ohio.).
