ST. CHARLES, MO. – The University of Missouri-St. Louis volleyball team picked up two wins on Friday at the Lindenwood Last Minute Challenge, defeating West Texas A&M in four sets before sweeping Bridgeport.
 
The Tritons were scheduled to be in Miami, Fla., this weekend, but Hurricane Irma forced UMSL and several other schools to change their plans, resulting in Lindenwood agreeing to host a last minute tournament.
 
UMSL 3, West Texas A&M 1 (18-25, 26-24, 25-18, 25-17)
Records: UMSL (4-1), West Texas A&M (4-1)
 
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
- After dropping the first set, UMSL came out in the second frame to take a 6-0 lead fueled by a pair of aces from senior Madyson Abeyta. The Tritons finished with seven in the set, but had to fend off an 8-0 run by the Lady Buffs that turned a 23-16 lead into a 24-23 deficit.
- UMSL hit .548 in the third set and turned a 9-7 deficit into a 12-9 lead with five unanswered points, three of which came on kills from sophomore Morgan Childers. She finished with four kills in five swings in that set.
- The Tritons jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the fourth set with five early kills before stretching it to 17-8. Defensively, UMSL limited West Texas A&M to just seven kills and -.081 hitting.
 
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
- Childers registered her first double-double of the year with 11 kills and 14 digs.
- Sophomore Selena Nolte led the team with 12 kills, while redshirt sophomore Maddy Russell added 11 kills.
- The Tritons hit .228 with Abeyta (20 assists) and freshman Payton Kennelly (18 assists) directing the offense. Kennelly also served up four aces, while Abeyta had two as UMSL tallied nine.
- Senior Danielle Waedekin recorded 22 digs, while redshirt senior Kara Roggemann had four blocks.
 
UMSL 3, Bridgeport 1 (25-17, 25-12, 25-18)
Records: UMSL (5-1), Bridgeport (1-3)
 
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
-UMSL outscored Bridgeport 12-3 to close out the first set, erasing a 14-13 deficit. Junior Alivia Brinker had two aces during that stretch.
- Three 5-0 runs in the second set helped UMSL to an 18-7 advantage.
- Junior Alex Miner and Rudsinski combined for 10 of UMSL's 18 kills in the third set, each recording five.
 
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
- Rudsinski recorded 11 kills in 19 attempts, helping the Tritons to a season-high .364 hitting percentage, while Miner led the team with 12 kills.
- Kennelly finished with 23 assists, while Abeyta recorded 21.
- Waedekin tallied 10 digs, while Brinker recorded seven digs and three service aces.
- UMSL outblocked its opponents, 5-0. Rudsinski and sophomore Amanda Vollmer had three blocks each.  
 
UP NEXT
UMSL wraps up tournament play tomorrow against Truman State and Lindenwood at 2 and 7 p.m.