Box Score Kearney, Neb. – True freshmen Connar Newberry and Kendall Schroer combined for 18 kills to help the 16th-ranked Nebraska-Kearney volleyball team sweep Emporia State (-13, -6, -16) Saturday night at the Health & Sports Center.
 
UNK (16-4, 6-2) finishes a quick three-match home stand with a 3-0 mark. Meanwhile, the Hornets fall below the .500 mark at 8-9 (3-5).
 
All 17 Lopers who suited up played with Kearney recording 11.0 team blocks, just the third time this year the team has had a double digit stuff total. That led to E-State hitting negative -.021 (22-24-96).
 
"Emporia was coming off a tough five-set loss to Fort Hays last night so we kinda of figured if we could get some momentum early, we could get control of things," said UNK head coach Rick Squiers. "Our girls played really well. We didn't commit a lot of unforced errors and that's as well as we've blocked in a long time."
 
With a couple of starters nursing minor ailments, Newberry (McKinney, Texas) and Schroer (Ogallala) got to see more playing time and they responded.
 
In the middle, Schroer had a team-high 10 kills and did so with only one error in 12 attempts (.750 attack pct.). She also had three blocks in three sets of work.
Next, Newberry had eight kills, two digs, two blocks and hit .421 from the outside.
 
Trailing only twice all night, UNK saw sophomore Allie Massanet (Manhattan, Kans.) serve up four straight points to begin the second set. Freshman Morgan Stute (Kearney Catholic H.S.) topped that soon after by standing at the line for 10 consecutive points.
 
Three of those points were kills by Newberry with the long serving streak making it 17-2.
 
Among the regulars, sophomore outside Kaitlynn Thomas (Yutan) had nine kills with fellow second year player Tara Ziegelbein (Lincoln Lutheran H.S.) at seven kills and a team-best six blocks. Finally, freshman setter Lindsey Smith (Dakota Dunes, S.D.) had 32 assists, six digs, four block assists and an ace.
 
Emporia was led by Tatum Graves with five kills and three blocks.
 
UNK is at Pittsburg State and nationally-ranked Central Oklahoma next weekend.