JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville State volleyball (16-2, 4-1) suffered their first loss in conference play on Friday night at Pete Mathews Coliseum, as the Gamecocks fell in three sets (25-16, 27-25, 25-19) to visiting Kennesaw State (11-4, 4-1).
 
"We didn't play like ourselves tonight in any aspect of the game, but hats off to Kennesaw for playing a great match," JSU head coach Todd Garvey said after the loss. "They wanted it more than we did tonight and forced us into a lot of errors which is really uncharacteristic of our team. Those errors affected our energy on the court."
 
The Owls used a strong defensive effort to take a commanding lead in the first set. JSU hit just .107 in the opening interval and could not stop massive scoring runs by KSU, who cruised to a 25-16 set victory.
 
The second set started similarly. An early Jacksonville State advantage went to waste and Kennesaw State led by as many as seven points midway through. However, JSU showed a plethora of grit down the stretch, surviving three set points and battling back to tie it at 25. However, consecutive kills by the Owls led to 27-25 win and a two-sets-to-none lead.
 
An off-balance Gamecock squad never seemed to settle in in set no. 3. Once again, a balanced offensive attack by KSU and a smothering defensive effort held Jacksonville State at bay as the Owls rolled to a 25-19 win, clinching the three-set victory over the Gamecocks.
 
Kennesaw State out-hit Jacksonville State .292 to .196 in Friday's match. The Owls finished with nine aces and seven blocks, versus JSU's two blocks and three aces. The Gamecocks had 12 service errors in the defeat. The sweep marked their first such loss since a setback at FGCU last season, and their first at home since Morehead State upset them in the 2019 Ohio Valley Conference Semifinals.
 
Redshirt sophomore Courtney Glotzbach led the team with nine kills against KSU and added four digs. Fifth-year Lena Kindermann finished with eight kills and a team-high .300 hitting percentage while graduate transfer Sophie Riemersma had six kills and two blocks. Senior Erin Carmichael ended up with 11 digs and graduate transfer Claire Ochs had 28 assists.
 
"Sometimes losses can be a good thing," Garvey said. "All you can do is learn from it and move on. I still believe a lot in this team and am looking forward to the next opportunity."
 
Jacksonville State returns to play Sunday afternoon in Kennesaw, Ga. That match at the KSU Convocation Center will begin at 12 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on ESPN+. JSU is back at home Oct. 14-15 to host Eastern Kentucky and Bellarmine.