MIDWAY, Ky. -- Following a quick road trip to Brescia (Ky.) earlier in the week, the Midway women's volleyball team returned to Marshall Gymnasium on Friday (Oct. 28) when they hosted IU Southeast (Ind.) in a River States Conference tilt.

Just like their last meeting just 10 days ago, the Eagles got off to a bit of a slow start as they once again dropped the first set. Midway, however, battled back winning the next three sets to clinch the 3-1 victory (22-25, 33-31, 25-19, 25-18).

With the win, Jonea Rima's club improves to 16-4 overall and 11-4 in league play The Grenadiers, meanwhile, slip to 10-13 overall and 6-8 in conference action.

After IU Southeast struck first and took the opening set, the Eagles looked to be in control of the second stanza holding a 17-12 advantage. The Grenadiers, however, didn't go down without a fight as they took a 20-17 lead on the heels of an 8-0 run.

Aubry Koester (Apple Valley, Calif.) then put down three consecutive kills as Midway tied the set at 21. The two squads traded blows over the next few points as an intense back-and-forth battle ensued.

The ending of the set saw nine ties with the final tie coming at 31. Anju Sugiya (Tokyo, Japan) put down a kill to give her team the one-point lead before Hannah Brink (Greenville, Mich.) served up an ace to clinch the 33-31 win as Midway tied the match at a set apiece.

The home team held a brief one-point lead early in the third, but they extended the lead to 21-13 after going on a 10-3 run. The Eagles went on win the third set 25-19, before cruising to a 25-18 win in the final set to seal the 3-1 victory.

Anju Sugiya led the way for the Eagles with one of the best performances of her career. The sophomore set new career-highs with 23 kills and 24 digs. She committed just five attacking errors in her 60 swings to finish with a .300 hitting clip.

Aubry Koester added 15 kills in the win, while Brooke Trompler (Campton, Ky.) posted a big-time double-double with 13 kills and 16 digs. Mariana Rodriguez (Houston, Texas), meanwhile, collected 15 digs and served a match-high four aces in the win.

Pilar Daugherty (Las Cruces, N.M.) and Valerie Ramos (San Juan, Puerto Rico) split time running the offense as they combined for 58 of Midway's 62 assists. Daugherty finished with 36 assists and seven digs, while Ramos chipped in 22 assists and seven digs in a winning effort.

The Eagles will enjoy the weekend off as they're set to wrap up the home portion of their schedule on Nov. 1 when they host Alice Lloyd (Ky.) at 7 p.m. ET.

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