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RedHawks ready to host Evansville and Northern Kentucky

Jordan Rinard, Senior Staff Writer

Looking to maintain its undefeated mark, the Miami University volleyball team is preparing to take on the University of Evansville and Northern Kentucky University in the Miami Invitational. Miami (3-0) will have its only home matches of the non-conference schedule in the Invitational.

Evansville (2-2) picked up wins last weekend when it downed both Murray State University and Northc Carolina Central University 3-0 during the North Carolina Central Tournament. During the Tournament, senior middle hitter Rachel TenHoor averaged 11 kills per match to go with her .554 hitting percentage, while senior setter Jenn Murphy and senior libero Katie Klages averaged 37 assists per match and 19 digs per match, respectively. As a team, the Purple Aces outhit and outblocked their tournament opposition .277 to .210 and 20 to eight respectively. The Purple Aces fell to the University of Tennessee-Martin Wednesday night.

Northern Kentucky (1-3) had difficult time this weekend in the Xavier Tournament as it fell to Clemson University 1-3, Xavier University 1-3, and the No. 7 University of Michigan 0-3. Over the course of the tournament, junior middle hitter Jenna Ruble averaged nine kills per match while redshirt freshman setter Taylor Snyder and senior libero Anna Prickel averaged 33.3 assists per match and 15.6 digs per match. The Norse knocked off Wright State University Tuesday night for their first win of the season.

The RedHawks return to Oxford after dispatching Gardner-Webb University 3-0, the University of Memphis 3-1 and Belmont University 3-0 last weekend in the Belmont Invitational.

Freshman middle hitter Paige Hill earned Tournament MVP honors after posting 9.3 kills per match, a .407 hitting percentage, and six of Miami's 15 service aces. Junior setter/outside hitter Meg Riley and junior libero Tori Clifford maintained a solid pace throughout the Invitational as well, with Riley recording 5.3 kills per match, a .228 hitting percentage, 18.0 assists per match, and nine digs per match and Clifford accumulating 14 digs per match. Redshirt sophomore middle hitter Jenny Ingle and redshirt sophomore outside hitter Sarah Chaney also showcased their abilities during the weekend, as Ingle recorder 14 kills and .520 hitting percentage against Memphis and Chaney a team-high nine kills against Belmont.

Over the course of the weekend, the 'Hawks outhit their opponents .217 to .075 and outblocked them 32 to 11.

"We were able to get so many blocks [during the Invitational] because of the height advantage that we had," head coach Carolyn Condit said. "The other teams were just so much smaller than us. They would have been better off had they stayed away from our size."

One of the players with the size that Condit mentioned, Ingle, spoke of what she and the team is doing to prepare for this weekend's matches.

"We've working on maintaining our consistency, improving our passing, and on having a strong presence on the court," Ingle said. "I've been working on angles, being loud, having a dominant presence, having a strong block, being a team contributor, and bringing energy to the court."

The Red and White begin play in the Miami Invitational when they host Evansville 7 p.m. Friday night, and conclude action with their match against Northern Kentucky 7 p.m. Saturday.


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