Sports Recap

Womens volleyball honored Ashley Holder (7), Dragana Micic (14), and Kelsey Wilson (18)

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Women’s volleyball honored Ashley Holder (7), Dragana Micic (14), and Kelsey Wilson (18)

Women’s Volleyball

The University of Akron women’s volleyball team dropped a pair of Mid-American Conference matches over the weekend. On Friday, the Zips lost to Miami (Ohio) in straight sets, (25-18, 25-17, and 25-19).

Amanda Bedell led the way for the Zips with a match-best 11 kills, while Anna Wenger followed up with eight. Karley Kusan finished the match with a double-double of 27 assists and 10 digs. Callie Mack chipped in 10 digs as well, along with a team-high three service aces.

On Saturday, Akron celebrated Senior Night by honoring Ashley Holder, Dragana Micic, and Kelsey Wilson before the match began.

Once the action started, the Zips fought hard in a back-and-forth match before dropping a heartbreaking five-set loss (20-25, 25-23, 13-25, 25-23, 5-15) to Bowling Green.

Kayla Gwozdz had 18 kills to lead the Zips, followed closely by Anna Wenger with 16. Karley Kusan posted her sixth double-double of the season with a team-high 39 assists and 17 digs.

The Zips (8-19 overall, 2-12 MAC) will travel to rival Kent State on Friday and then head south to play Ohio on Saturday to close out the regular season.

Akron Rifle

The No. 14 Akron rifle team battled with the No. 2 Alaska rifle squad last Thursday, but the Nanooks prevailed over the Zips, 4,661 to 4,598.

“We were pleased to host a team with the rich history only the University of Alaska could have. As the match progressed it became evident the Nanook’s were a little off the mark. This left the door open for us, but we were not able to take advantage of the situation,” said head coach Newt Engle.

“We had a very respectable small-bore performance, but for whatever reason our air rifle counters had trouble finding the middle,” Engle continued. “Hopefully this will be out of their system as we prepare to host Ole Miss on Saturday and go head to head with several nationally ranked teams on Sunday.”

In the air rifle competition, Zachary Strohl was the top marksman for the Zips. Strohl shot a 588, which was good for second overall. Connor O’Mara and Julia Hatch both shot a 578, the second-best scores for Akron, contributing to the Zips 2,317 combined score.