CARBONDALE, Ill. – The Billikens defeated Merrimack in straight sets on Friday afternoon inside Davies Gym on the campus of Southern Illinois.
SET 1 | SLU 25, Merrimack 18
Saint Louis jumped out to an early 5-2 lead and continued to build its advantage, taking a 12-5 lead midway through the set. Merrimack rallied with a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to 16-12, but the Billikens responded with four straight points to regain control at 23-14. Saint Louis closed the set hitting .423, recording 11 kills without an attack error.
SET 2 | SLU 25, Merrimack 19
The Billikens opened the second set with a 4-0 run and maintained the lead through the early stages. Merrimack battled back to take a 14-13 lead before Saint Louis regained the advantage. The Billikens scored six straight points to take a 19-14 lead. Saint Louis held off Merrimack the rest of the way, closing out the set, 25-19.
SET 3 | SLU 28, Merrimack 26
The third set featured 11 ties and three lead changes as neither team could pull away. Saint Louis held an 18-15 advantage before Merrimack rallied to tie the set at 19-19 and eventually took a 21-19 lead. The Billikens answered to even the score at 22-22 and the teams traded points through the end of the set until Saint Louis capitalized on a
Tea Kalajdzic and
Anna Boatner block to close it out.
NOTABLES
- Kalajdzic led the Billikens with 15 kills while hitting .480
- Jetta Brenning recorded another double-double with 23 assists and 17 digs
- Anna Alexander finished with eight kills on .333 hitting and added two service aces
- Boatner recorded five kills and five total blocks
UP NEXT
The Billikens take on the hosts, Southern Illinois, on Saturday at 2:30 PM.
