Monmouth burns Blackburn in home opener
Izzy Gimm - Website and Social Media Manager
The Fighting Scots volleyball team rallied to win their home opening game against
Blackburn College in a non-conference match. After dropping the first set with a 15-25 score, Monmouth took the next three, scoring 25-15, 26-24, and 25-21 to win the match 3-1. The second set was much different than the first when Monmouth took the momentum quickly, starting 2-1 on an ace from Layne Wright (Davenport, IA). A kill from Zoe Nizzia (Pekin, IL), and another ace from Wright made it 4-1. Amanda Dybal (Apex, NC) had two kills as the lead grew to 8-4. Kenzie Russell (Morton, IL) had a kill and Wright put up another ace for a 18-11 lead. With the Scots up 23-15, Nizzia put down a kill and an error from Blackburn gave Monmouth the second set with a 25-15 score. “I was nervous coming in and playing as a freshman, but the team has made the environment so comfortable, and Coach has given me confidence to play to the best of my ability,” says freshman outside hitter Zoe Nizzia.
Monmouth fell behind early in the third set, trailing behind by as many as three points on multiple occasions. A kill from Wright gave Monmouth a lead and the run extended on an ace from Nizzia. CeCe Palladino (Volo, IL) and Dybal both had kills for set points at 24-21 but Blackburn won the next three. With a kill, Dybal gave Monmouth a 25-24 lead and Russell finished off the set with a kill.
The Scots jumped out with an early lead in the fourth set and never trailed. Kills from Palladino and Wright in a 7-0 run gave Monmouth an 11-4 lead. Wright gave the Scots a 20-14 lead with a kill, but Blackburn won the next four points to get back into the set. Dybal finished off the match with her 14th kill of the night and a 25-21 set win. Dybal led the way with 14 kills and Wright added 10. Russell had seven kills and Nizzia had six in her home opener. Savannah Robinson (Delavan, IL) led the Scots with 16 digs, while Wright (14) and Nizzia (12) were also in double digits. Wright had four of Monmouth's six aces and Palladino had a hand in six of the Scots nine blocks.