COLUMBUS, Miss. – The Owls women's volleyball team honored senior Savannah Thomas and MUW Faculty and Staff during its final match of the 2018 season. In front of a home crowd, The W took on Lane College for the second time this year. In the first outing, the Owls defeated the Dragons 3-0 on the road but was unable to repeat the feat in Saturday's match. The W fell 3-0 (19-25, 22-25, 17-25) on Saturday, Nov. 3 to close the season 5-22.
"Today was not the result we wanted, but we made some smart plays and rallied well," said head coach Roxanne Hernandez. "It's an opportunity for us to look at the first matchup against Lane and this time around to see what we can improve on."
Haley McMurphey, a junior outside hitter, led the Owls offense against Lane. Playing in all three sets, McMurphey recorded 19 total attacks with seven kills and two service aces for 9.0 points. Also aiding offensively, Kayla King tallied 19 attacks with seven kills. She also grabbed one block solo for 8.0 points.
On the defensive side of the ball, Owls senior Savanah Thomas and libero Courtney Poole tied with eight digs to lead the team. At setter, Mary Grace Prine and Madison Lamon tied with nine assist each to help the team.
The Owls played hard and put up more attacks than the Dragons 89-82. Lane pulled ahead of The W in kills with 27 to the Owls 20. Lane was also able to minimize its errors compared to Owls to claim the victory.
"The season was a whirlwind of ups and downs and in-between," continued Coach Hernandez. "Our mental toughness and unforced error games is something we need to be dedicated to improving on but I feel this group did a much better job and has improved tremendously since last year. I am excited to put in work out of season to get prepared for next year."
