AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University volleyball team continued to roll on Wednesday night, sweeping the Fire of Southeastern University, 25-12, 25-12, 25-20 at the Rhodora J. Donahue Academy gymnasium. In the home opener of the 2020 season, the Gyrenes rolled past the Fire for the team's first home win against Southeastern since the 2011 season. Against two of the top teams in The Sun Conference, the Gyrenes have now won six consecutive sets.
In the opening set of the match, the Gyrenes opened up the action with a huge run to gain an early 1-0 lead in the contest. Southeastern and Ave Maria traded the lead several times in the opening moments of the match, leading to the Fire taking a 10-9 lead. The Gyrenes then proceeded to score four points in a row to take the lead for good at 13-10. AMU then put the match away with an 11-0 that was keyed by the serve of sophomore Miah Pena. A kill by freshman Zelie Kessler ended the opening set, with the Gyrenes holding a 25-12 edge.
Ave Maria continued to dominate in the second set, which also saw the Gyrenes claim a 25-12 victory. AMU scored seven of the first ten points in the set, and only trailed once at 2-1. Southeastern cut the Gyrenes' lead down to 10-7, but five unanswered points from AMU re-extended the lead to eight points at 15-7. The lead never again dipped lower than seven points, and a service error clinched a 25-12 win and a 2-0 lead for the Gyrenes.
The third set was the closest of the match, with the first lead of more than three points coming when Ave Maria took an 18-14 lead in the closing stages. Southeastern got as close as three points in the final moments of the match, but were consistently stymied by the attack of the host Gyrenes. On Ave Maria's second match point, a serve from Southeastern sailed into the net to clinch the program's first home win over the perrenial power in nearly a decade.
Sophomore Madelyn Haut led the Gyrenes with ten kills with two solo blocks and two assisted blocks in the win, while junior Cabriella Bouterse added eight kills. Reigning Sun Conference Setter of the Week Katie Grose had 31 assists for AMU, and also added six kills, three digs, three aces, and a block assist. Defensively, three Gyrenes had more than ten digs, led by 18 from Victoria Schein. Miah Pena added eleven, and Hannah Jones chipped in ten.
The week continues for the Gyrenes on Saturday, when the Mariners of Coastal Georgia come to Ave Maria. The Mariners currently sit at 1-1 in conference play, with a victory over Warner and a loss to Keiser. Opening serve at Donahue Academy is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
