KENNESAW, Ga. – The Jacksonville State volleyball team split the final day of the Kennesaw State Invitation with a 3-0 sweep of Alabama State before dropping the final game of the event to host Kennesaw State.
The Gamecocks (2-1) started the tournament with back-to-back sweeps to open the 2015 season before suffering its first setback on Saturday night. The 2-1 mark earned Jax State a second-place finish in the tournament. Freshman Mackenzie Rombach and sophomore Hannah Kirk were named to the All-Tournament team following the conclusion of the event.
JSU began the day by defeating Alabama State in straight sets (25-12, 25-20, 25-10). The Gamecocks controlled the match throughout limiting ASU (1-2) to just a .057 team hitting percentage. Defensively, Rombach set a new career best in her second game with a team-high five blocks. Senior Samantha Bohne and Kirk tied with six digs apiece. Across the net, sophomore Jennifer Hart dished 28 of JSU's 31 assists.
JSU took the opening set, 25-12. A pair of service aces by Rombach aided a 6-0 run that pushed Jax State out front 16-7. Sophomore Charis Ludtke had a .714 hitting percentage with five kills in the first set leading a Gamecock offense that combined to hit .450.
The second set looked to be headed in the same direction as JSU jumped out to a 12-4 lead. ASU fought back cutting its deficit to just three, 14-11, before senior Emily Rutherford's kill shifted momentum back to the Red and White. Errors from the Hornets allowed JSU to go on taking the set 25-20.
less than a day afetr opening the season with a sweep of Savannah State, the Gamecocks closed out their second sweep of the Kennesaw State Invitational by taking the third and final set from Alabama State, 25-10.
In the nightcap against Kennesaw State, JSU was unable to hang with the Owls, suffering its first loss (15-25, 20-25, 15-25) of the season.
The Gamecocks dropped the first set 25-15. JSU struggled offensively and was unable to find the same rhythm from the first two matches.
The Gamecocks fell behind 4-0 to begin the second frame before rallying to tie, 5-5, and take its first lead of the match at 7-6 following a KSU error. The Owls tied the set again, 11-11. From there, the teams went back-and-forth for several points. When all knotted at 20-20, a trio of kills from KSU's Kelly Marcinek fueled a 5-0 run for the Owls finishing off the second set.
A kill from sophomore Allyson Zuhlke gave JSU the lead to open the third set, but the Owls weren't going away. JSU went ahead 7-6 on a kill from Ludtke before an 8-1 run gave Kennesaw an advantage it wouldn't relinquish. KSU went on the claim the third set by an identical score as the first, 25-15.
"I liked our effort the whole tournament," head coach Terry Gamble said following Saturday night's match. "I've said it before, this team will work hard. I thought our youth showed in game three. Kennesaw is a good team, they run a fast offense and I think our youth saw what division one volleyball is like.
"We're going to get better; this is going to be a learning year all year. I was a little disappointed in our upperclassmen production. Not with the effort, but what we got out of players knowing what they can do."
All-Tournament selection Rombach's seven kills led JSU against KSU, followed by Rutherford (6) and Ludtke (5). Kirk, JSU's second All-Tournament selection, recorded 18 digs, while Ludtke added 11. Hart had 19 assists, giving her 47 total for the final day of the tournament.
"I'm very proud of Mackenzie Rombach," Gamble said. "She's going to be a foundation that we build on for years to come. (Hannah) Kirk and Kim (Krutsinger) also had very nice tournaments."
JSU will next play Alcorn State on September 4 to open the Gamecock Invitational. The event will be played in Centre, Ala., north of Jacksonville, at the Cherokee Center and Arena as renovations continue at Pete Mathews Coliseum. Admission is free to all matches of the tournament.
