NICK FEAKES | Reporter
The Lindenwood women’s volleyball team (10-8) recorded its first two wins of the MIAA conference season this weekend.
The Lions defeated Emporia State University (9-7) on Friday in three sets (25-20, 26-24, 25-10). The Lions then dispatched Washburn University (11-6) on Saturday in a five-set thriller (23-25, 25-21, 25-23, 17-25, 15-12).
The Lions were led at the net by freshman Sadie Kosciuk. Kosciuk recorded nine kills and five blocks against Emporia State before turning in another stellar performance against Washburn with 14 kills and eight blocks.
Kathryn Finnerty and Emily Wylie were forces on offense with 20 and 22 kills over the weekend respectively. Wylie leads the Lions with 179 kills on the season.
Megan Hellwege recorded 44 digs on the weekend. Hellwege currently has 389 digs on the season
“Emily is great at running slides and slamming the ball down the line,” teammate Bailey Dvorak said. “She switches up her shots a lot, so it’s hard for other teams to scout her.”
What makes Kosciuk’s numbers even more impressive is her efficiency. Kosciuk hit .400 against Emporia State and .286 against Washburn. She leads the Lions in hitting percentage with a .333 mark on the season.
Serving was a strong point for the Lions on the weekend. They had nine aces against both opponents. Alex Dahlstrom recorded six aces on the weekend. Ally Clancy and Sara Wagenknecht had three each.
In addition to serving, the Lions’ defense was a highlight for them. The Lions held Emporia State to a -.038 hitting percentage in the final set of the game.
“We really focused on working as hard as we could every point,” Hellwege said. “Our bench was amazing. They brought the energy. We were very aggressive with our serving, taking them out of system a lot and stayed tough at the net. This weekend was a total team effort, and I’m so proud of the way we responded after last weekend.”