ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Kaitlyn Hamilton tallied a match-high 14 kills and Ella Scott added 13, leading Indiana State to a four-set win over UL-Monroe (25-23, 25-22, 19-25, 25-23) Friday afternoon in the first match of the Lindenwood Invitational.
 
Scott's 13 kills came on a .632 hitting percentage, the highest clip among attackers from either side. Hannah Baudin dished out 36 assists, while Macy Lengacher led the Trees with 17 digs and was one of three Sycamores with double-digit digs in the match. Karinna Gall finished one kill shy of a double-double with nine kills and 12 digs.
 
Indiana State's service game got off to a hot start as Baudin opened the match with an ace, one of five in the first set for the Sycamores. Hamilton, Gall and Scott all had kills in the early stages to help the Blue and White jump out to a 10-5 lead. UL-Monroe cut its deficit down to three midway through the set, but a pair of kills by Gall upped Indiana State's advantage late in the set to 22-15. The Warhawks went on a 7-0 run late to cut Indiana State's lead to 24-23, but a service error gave the Sycamores the opening set by a two-point margin.
 
The Sycamores quickly jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the second on the strength of three early kills by Hamilton. Indiana State upped its lead to 16-7 following kills by Gall and Emma Kaelin, but the Warhawks came rallying back. ULM evened the set at 21-apiece, but a pair of Warhawk errors and a pair of Hamilton kills helped Indiana State take the second set, 25-22, giving the Sycamores a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
UL-Monroe jumped out to a quick four-point lead in the third set and never trailed for the remainder of the set. A block assist by Baudin and Jamie Brown cut the Sycamore deficit to 11-8, but ULM followed with a scoring run to make it 16-9. Indiana State got within 20-17 following two kills by Scott in a three-point span, but the Warhawks claimed the third set 25-19 to extend the match.
 
Indiana State found itself in an early 6-1 hole in the fourth set, but the Sycamores clawed their way back into the set. Kills by Gall and Hamilton, along with a Hamilton block solo, cut the Trees' deficit down to 7-6, but ULM responded with its own scoring run to re-up its advantage to five. Facing a four-point deficit for most of the middle stages of the set, Indiana State responded when it mattered most. Baudin started the Sycamore rally with a block solo, which was followed by kills from Scott and Brown and back-to-back service aces by Scott to give Indiana State a 23-22 lead. Kills by Madisen Perry and Kaitlyn Hamilton sealed the 25-23 set win for Indiana State, giving the Sycamores their second win of the season.
 
Inside the Numbers

• Five of Indiana State's seven aces came in the opening set. Karinna Gall had a pair of aces in that set, with Hannah Baudin, Emma Kaelin and Ella Scott also serving at least one ace in the opeing set.
• Indiana State won the match despite having fewer kills, assists and digs than UL-Monroe.
• Ella Scott registered her first career match with double-digit kills, finishing with 13 kills on 19 attempts.

 
News and Notes

• Indiana State's two non-conference wins through the first four matches of the season already exceeds last season's non-conference win total (one).
• Jamie Brown made her 2023 season debut Friday, finishing with three kills, two blocks and one dig in three sets played.
• Emma Kaelin served as the Sycamores' libero in the third and fourth sets, marking the first time in her career that she played at libero.

 
Up Next
Indiana State wraps up its first day of competition at the Lindenwood Invitational against Austin Peay at 6 p.m.
 
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