Women’s Volleyball | Photo by Monica Brutto | The Wright State Guardian
Wright State University volleyball dominates the Horizon League to start its conference play, moving to an 8-0 record after a win over the Robert Morris Colonials Thursday night.
Overview of win
The Raiders showcased its offense, defense and movement of the ball, showing how the team has dominated the HL.
The team now moves to 16-3 overall with 11 wins in a row and seems to show no signs of stopping, since the Raiders have dominated each matchup this season.
The game
WSU took the match in a quick three sets. The Colonials gave the Raiders more trouble as the match continued, but WSU held the advantage throughout the game, forcing RMU to play a defensive game.
The Raider block held back the Colonials throughout the match as well, as 5-foot-11 fifth year Lainey Stephenson and 6-foot junior Taylor Bransfield combined for WSU’s four blocks.
On offense, the Raiders averaged a .411 hitting percentage as a team; the Raider block stifled RMU to a hitting percentage of .033. The Colonials had more kill attempts than WSU, but the Raiders would finish 42 to the Colonials’ 18.
Bransfield was the offensive starting point for WSU, leading the game with 14 kills. RMU’s leading scorer only notched six.
The Raiders’ 8-0 conference record has been even more dominant when looking at set wins. In its eight HL matches, WSU has won 24 sets and only lost one, a 24-26 set dropped to the Oakland Golden Grizzlies.
Moving Forward
With a target on its back for the rest of the season, the Raiders are surging toward the HL Tournament. WSU’s record puts the team on top of the HL standings, with all other teams having at least two losses.
WSU is nearly guaranteed to make the HL Championship. There is an added boost to remaining the first seed: the first seed in the HL has the entire conference tournament played in its home gymnasium, offering that home squad a huge home-court advantage.
The Raiders have been on point at home over the past four seasons with a 35-6 record in McLin Gymnasium. The team has a 6-0 record in McLin this season, with two wins over the University of Dayton Flyers as the capstone.
The Raiders play a home conference weekend next week with a match against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies on Friday, Oct. 21 and the Cleveland State Vikings on Saturday, Oct. 22. Both games will have free admission.
