CHARLESTON, Ill. – Southeast Missouri women's volleyball (10-6, 2-1) held off Eastern Illinois (6-12, 1-2), 3-2, Friday night at Lantz Arena for Southeast's first Ohio Valley Conference road win this season and 10th victory in 2018.
 
The Redhawks started the match with a 2-0 advantage after taking the first two sets, 30-28, 27-25. Eastern Illinois then responded with identical 25-21 third and fourth sets to force a fifth set.
 
In the deciding fifth set, SEMO prevailed 15-11 after jumping out to a 6-2 lead. A Laney Malloy rally stopper extended the edge to 10-7 before a Claire Ochs kill coupled with two EIU ball handling errors made the score 13-8.
 
Kendall Washington then smashed a kill to secure the victory.
 
Malloy, Haley Bilbruck and Ochs each registered double-double performances. Malloy led the Redhawks with 22 kills and a career best 26 digs. Ochs matched a career high of 57 assists and had 21 digs and four kills.
 
Bilbruck posted her first career double-double, tallying 11 kills and a personal best 15 digs.
 
Eastern Illinois began the opening set with an 11-4 lead and extended that advantage to 16-9. Despite the early adversity, Southeast rallied back with a Malloy kill to cut the deficit to 20-16.
 
A kill from Bilbruck coupled with a service ace from Ochs tied the set at 23-23.
 
Kills from Krista Berns, Bilbruck and Malloy (2) then knotted the set at 24-24, 25-25, 26-26 and 27-27. Kylie Michael notched a kill for EIU to force set point at 28-27 before the Redhawks posted three straight points punctuated by an Annie Wehrheim kill.
 
The second set started inversely from the first as SEMO began the set with a 7-3 advantage after a 4-0 run bookended by Bilbruck kills which prompted an Eastern Illinois timeout.
 
Trailing in the set 17-15, Southeast went on a 4-0 rally to pull ahead 19-17 as the Panthers called their second timeout. Out of the break, the Redhawks grew their lead to 23-19 on a Malloy kill and a Bilbruck service ace.
 
Madeline Grimm added a kill to make the score 24-20 before EIU pulled ahead 25-24. Kills by Wehrheim sandwiching an Ally Dion service ace then captured the set for Southeast, 27-25.
 
The Panthers tied the set at 2-2 with 25-21, 25-21 third and fourth sets. EIU hit a match high hitting clip of .265 in the third set.
 
Berns had 11 kills with a career high seven digs. Wehrheim finished the match with eight kills. 
 
Dion added a season high of 24 digs and Grimm had 15.
 
With the victory, Southeast has now posted 10 wins in 2018 and is one away from matching the win total of 11 tallied in 2017.
 
The Redhawks continue their weekend road trip with a 2 p.m. Saturday matchup against SIUE at the Vadalabene Center.