Women's Volleyball 9/2/2016 9:19:00 PM Derrick Blyberg, Sports Information Director

Urbana Opens Season with Split at Cavs Classic

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 NORTH CANTON, Ohio - The Urbana University women's volleyball team blanked host Walsh 3-0 (30-28, 25-18, 25-23) and later fell 3-1 to Bellarmine (19-25, 25-14, 17-25, 18-25) Friday afternoon at the Cavalier Classic.

The Blue Knights (1-1) will close out the season-opening tournament on Saturday with two more matches, including an early contest against league-opponenet Glenville State (0-2) at 9 a.m. ET. The finale for UU will take place at 3 p.m. ET versus Davis & Elkins (1-1).

In the season opener against the Cavs, UU outlasted the hosts in the first set with a gritty 30-28 win. The Blue Knights led for most of the opening set and held a seven-point lead at one point, 13-6, but the Cavs fought back and had a chance to grab set point with a 25-24 lead. That's when junior Katlynn Dunlap (Zoarville, Ohio/Tuscarawas Valley), a 2015 first-team all-conference player, stepped up with a kill to prevent the loss. The two squads went back and forth until junior transfer Mikaela Beck (Detroit, Mich./Wallad Lake Central) recorded two straight kills to end it.

After taking the second set 25-18, the Blue Knights edged out the Cavs again by two points in the clincher, 25-23.

A pair of newcomers helped lead the way with double-double performances in their debuts, including Beck who put down a team-high 11 kills and had 11 digs. Freshman setter Alyssa Myers (Whitehall, Mich./Whitehall) also shined in her first match by dishing out 23 assists and corralling 10 digs.

Maia Dunlap finished with a team-high 20 digs, while sister Katlynn had 15 digs with eight kills. Junior Aleese Butler (Blacklick, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln) also had a productive outing with eight kills and match-high six blocks.

UU limited Walsh to .097 total-attack percentage, outhitting the Cavs while posting .142 (35-17-127).

In the battle of the Knights versus Bellarmine, UU stormed back with an impressive 25-14 second-set victory to even the score at 1-1, but couldn't overcome a late run in the third set and early run in the fourth by Bellarmine.

Beck (13 kills/nine digs) and Katlynn Dunlap (12 kills) reached double figures in scoring again, while Maia Dunlap secured a team-best 12 digs. Myers totaled 34 assists in the second match.

UU's depth played out in the second match as 13 players saw time on the court. Junior transfer Molly Van Oss (Dayton, Ohio/Alter) and freshmen Audrey Pumford (St. Charles, Mich/St. Charles Community), Callahan Baxter (Thorntown, Ind./Western Boone), and Cecily Clark (Cincinnati, Ohio/Princeton) each made their first appearance in a Blue Knight uniform.

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Players Mentioned

#19 Mikaela Beck: OH; 5' 10"; Senior

#8 Aleese Butler: MH/RS; 5' 10"; Junior

#6 Cecily Clark: OH; 5' 9"; Freshman

#20 Katlynn Dunlap: OH; 5' 9"; Junior

#15 Maia Dunlap: DS; 5' 5"; Junior

#18 Callahan Baxter: OH; 5' 9"; Freshman

#3 Alyssa Myers: S; 5' 10"; Freshman

#1 Audrey Pumford: S; 5' 7"; Freshman

#10 Molly Van Oss: MH; 5' 11"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#19 Mikaela Beck
: 5' 10"; Senior
: OH

#8 Aleese Butler
: 5' 10"; Junior
: MH/RS

#6 Cecily Clark
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: OH

#20 Katlynn Dunlap
: 5' 9"; Junior
: OH

#15 Maia Dunlap
: 5' 5"; Junior
: DS

#18 Callahan Baxter
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: OH

#3 Alyssa Myers
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: S

#1 Audrey Pumford
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: S

#10 Molly Van Oss
: 5' 11"; Senior
: MH