CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri volleyball (2-15, 1-2 OVC) knocked off Eastern Illinois (3-15, 0-3 OVC) in straight sets (25-21, 25-21, 25-22) Friday night at Houck Field House.

Trailing for a majority of the opening set, Southeast battled back to an eventual tie at 20. The Redhawks overtook the Panthers with strong late surge behind Krissa Gearring, who tallied four kills in the final six rallies. Southeast eventually won 25-21 behind a strong .311 team hitting clip in the game.

A close battle began in the second frame, as SEMO found themselves ahead 13-12. Southeast then captured six rallies in the row to take a commanding lead before coasting to an eventual 25-21 win thanks to a well dispersed attacked.

Nzingha Clarke led the charge in the final set, registering five kills with an explosive .833 hitting clip. The Redhawks sweep of the Panthers was the first 3-0 victory of the season, snapping a 15-game losing skid.

"I'm really proud of the way we played tonight," stated head coach Julie Yankus. "We started out slow but the team remained calm and pushed through it. We passed very well and that helped us run our offense effectively."

Gearring finished the night with 17 kills while Clarke followed with 13 and a team high .571 attack percentage. Gearring was joined by Rachel Poole and Jade Mortimer defensively as all three tallied 14 digs during the contest. Katarina Rotta set a new Redhawks season-high mark for assists in a three set matches with 41.

"Gearring and Clarke did a great job of terminating even when they faced a double block," continued Yankus. "Rotta ran a very well-balanced offense today and made some great decisions. All 15 players contribute to this program each and every day and all 15 contributed to the win tonight."

The Redhawks will close out the weekend tomorrow when they host SIUE at 1:30 p.m.