TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Laura Gross and Nikkie White put down 14 kills and Indiana State rallied back from a 2-1 deficit for a 3-2 win over Saint Louis Saturday evening at ISU Arena, claiming the Sycamore Invitational championship.
 
The Sycamores (6-3) were powered by a season-high 10 service aces while Saint Louis (1-8) only mustered four service aces to 13 service errors in the match.
 
Gross and White were two of four Indiana State players in double-digit kills while Gross (18), Jade York (14) and Makayla Knoblauch (11) were each credited with double-digit digs.
 
Indiana State never trailed in the fifth set, jumping out to a 6-0 lead in the decisive final set.
 
Set scores were 25-19, 20-25, 21-25, 25-19 and 15-9.
 
SET 1 – Indiana State 25, Saint Louis 19

• ISU posted four aces (with only two service errors) in the set while SLU was responsible for three service errors and no aces.
• Nikkie White led ISU with four kills in the frame.
• Makayla Knoblauch posted four digs in the set.

SET 2 – Saint Louis 25, Indiana State 20

• Saint Louis never trailed in the set.
• It took the Billikens four tries on set point before closing out the frame.
• While Indiana State hit a solid .370, Saint Louis hit a commanding .524 in the set.

SET 3 – Saint Louis 25, Indiana State 21

• Saint Louis never trailed in the set but the four-point margin matched the largest lead of the set for the Billikens as ISU never trailed by much.
• Indiana State was out hit, .267 to .184, in the frame.
• ISU posted 19 digs to the 15 digs by SLU.

SET 4 – Indiana State 25, Saint Louis 19

• Rhiannon Morozoff led all players with six kills in the set.
• Despite the set win, Indiana State was out hit in the set, .237 to .226.
• Serving was pivotal in the frame as ISU had three aces and one service error while Saint Louis had six service errors and no aces.

SET 5 – Indiana State 15, Saint Louis 9

• The Sycamores jumped out to a 6-0 lead and never trailed in the set.
• Laura Gross led all players with four kills and four digs in the set.
• ISU hit an impressive .412 in the set compared to -.050 for Saint Louis.

NOTABLES

• Indiana State now leads the all-time series over Saint Louis, 11-9. ISU is 4-4 all-time against the Billikens in Terre Haute.
• The win marked the first Sycamore victory over Saint Louis since.
• ISU is now 2-2 this season in five-set matches.
• Indiana State claimed the team championship of the Sycamore Invitational with the win. This marked the first early season tournament championship of the year of ISU after back-to-back runner-up finishes.
• Nikkie White's .343 hitting percentage is a career-high mark.

 
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