Stetson Falls to IUPUI, EMU to Open Season

Indianapolis, Ind. - The Stetson volleyball team (0-2) finally got underway in the 2011 season on Saturday, dropping two 3-0 matches to host IUPUI and Eastern Michigan in the IUPUI Hampton Inn Invitational. Sophomore outside hitter Kaley Melville (New Germany, Minn.) tallied 27 kills on the day to lead the Hatters.

Stetson opened the tourney with a 25-19, 25-13, 25-14 loss to the tournament hosts as the Jaguars out-hit the Hatters .314 to .082. The service game also made a huge difference in the match as IUPUI recorded eight aces and held Stetson to none. Melville notched a 10-kill, 10-dig double-double while junior setter Alisha Hoffman (Leesburg, Fla.) had 16 assists in her Hatters debut. Junior libero Monique Russell (Phoenix, Ariz.) had 11 digs.

IUPUI (1-5) was led by Moriah Fair (11 kills, 10 digs), Alexis Meeks (39 assists), Shari Bernhardt (18 digs) and Bethany Fogler (seven kills, .700 hitting percentage, six blocks).

The Hatters had similar trouble in the late afternoon against Eastern Michigan, falling 25-13, 25-20, 25-16. Again, Stetson was dominated in hitting percentage by a .343 to .092 margin.

Melville was perhaps the lone bright spot on offense, finishing with 17 kills and a .282 attack percentage. Junior setter Kelli Carneal (Fredericksburg, Va.) finished with 15 assists and six digs while Russell recorded 21 digs of her own.

Paige Roback led EMU with 11 kills with Kristen Baker adding 10 without an error (.625). Ashley Mason (35 assists, eight digs) and Haley Stein (14 digs) also put up strong stat lines for the Eagles (5-1).

The Hatters conclude the IUPUI Hampton Inn Invitational tomorrow afternoon at 12:30 pm vs. Marshall. A link to Live Stats is available at GoHatters.com.

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