FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 28, 2006

Lions take out Fort Hays in four games

Joplin, Mo. -- Tessa Woods (Joplin, MO/Joplin HS) had 11 kills and hit .524 with five blocks leading the Missouri Southern volleyball team to a four game win over visiting Fort Hays State today. Individual game scores were 30-19, 28-30, 30-16 and 30-15.

Southern (23-10, 7-6) secured the third seed in the MIAA West for next week's MIAA Volleyball Tournament. The Lions will play a first-round match at MIAA East No. 2 seed Central Missouri on Tuesday, October 31. Game time is slated for 7 p.m.

The Lions led 12-7 in game one, but with two separate runs of four points each, Southern went on top 24-12 and cruised to the game one win.

FHSU (3-24, 1-12 MIAA) hit negative .158 in game one, as six Lion blocks helped shut down the Tiger offense. Hays responded, though, and hit .289 in game two and limited the Lions to a .119 attack average for the win, picking up its first game in nine matches, 28 straight games.

Southern gathered themselves in game three jumping out to a 10-4 lead and eventually leading 20-11, before taking the game 30-16. The Lions led from point one in game four as Sarah Joles (Blue Springs, MO/Blue Springs South HS) served out six straight points to begin the game.

Ashley Wright (Everton MO/Miller HS) had 12 kills and four blocks, while Sarah Hoffmeister (Joplin, MO/Joplin HS) had eight kills and 15 digs. Ashley Mehrer (Kansas City, MO/Winnetonka HS) had seven kills, hitting .389 with a match-high six blocks. Megan Norman (Stockton, MO/Stockton HS) added 13 digs. Joles had 40 assists and three blocks.

With the win, Southern moved to 7-6 in league play, tying with Pittsburg State and Emporia State for the final three spots in the MIAA West. PSU earned the No. 2 seed in the West via the MIAA tiebreaker policy. Southern is third while ESU is fourth. Southern faces off with Central Missouri, and Emporia State will travel to Truman for a first-round match. Pittsburg State hosts Missouri Western, while Washburn will play host to Northwest Missouri. Winners of those first-round matches will advance to the final two rounds of the 2006 MIAA Tournament to be held at Washburn.