Box Score Kearney, Neb. – The top-ranked Nebraska-Kearney volleyball team used a balanced offense to take the final three sets and defeat third-ranked Washburn (22-25, -21, -23, -16) Saturday afternoon at the Health & Sports Center.
 
A crowd of 1,337 watched the matchup of the last two remaining unbeaten teams in Division II. This also was the first-ever volleyball match in Kearney with two top three teams squaring off.
 
UNK (14-0, 5-0) is now 244-14 at home since 1999. The Lady Blues, defending MIAA champions, fall to 14-1 (5-1) and are 8-27 all-time vs. the Lopers. 
 
Washburn grabbed the momentum early as they erased a 15-9 deficit in set one thanks to an 11-2 outburst. The stretch included five kills, two blocks and four unforced Loper errors.
 
The Lady Blues then took a 1-0 match lead after Hillary Hughes and Jessica Kopp recorded back-to-back kills.
 
The second set featured 17 ties and four lead changes. UNK broke a 21 all tie, and forced Washburn to use its second timeout, after a kill by freshman right side MJ Massanet (Manhattan, Kans.).
 
A Washburn unforced error, and kills by Massanet and sophomore outside Liz McGowan (GI Central Catholic), ended the set and tied the match.
 
Eight ties highlighted the third set as the Lopers got out to a 10-7 lead and never trailed again. Washburn did tie things up at 21 but UNK recorded a kill, a block and saw the Blues send one long to reach set point.
Washburn did make things interesting with two kills but Massanet ended a long rally with one of her four kills to give the Lopers a 2-1 match lead.
 
The fourth and final set was similar to the first as UNK jumped out to a 17-9 cushion, only to see the Lady Blues storm back again. Three straight WU kills made it 19-15 but the Lopers scored the next two and went on to win the set by nine.
 
Kearney recorded eight more kills, 58 to 50, and hit 74 points higher than Washburn, .189-.115 The Blues did hold a slight advantage in digs, 104 to 100, and team blocks, eight to six, and had four fewer service errors.
 
McGowan (10) and fellow outside Ariel Krolikowski (15) each reached double digits in kills as did middles Ellie Pesavento and Katie Sokolowski (both at 13).
 
Sokolowski also hit a team-high .367 and recorded back-to-back blocks to end the match. Next, Krolikowski (16) and McGowan (10) were two of the five UNK players to have double digit dig totals, paced by senior Kaleigh Anderson's 33.  
 
The libero's 33 digs are not only a career-high but seven shy of the school record and a new UNK record for digs in a four-set match.
 
Hughes (10 kills & 10 digs), Kopp (15 kills) and Marissa Cox (11 kills) paced Washburn.
 
UNK heads to Bolivar, Mo., next weekend to face four teams from the newly formed Great American Conference.