CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri women's volleyball (10-2, 10-2 OVC) extended its win streak to 10 matches after the Redhawks overcame Austin Peay (8-4, 8-4 OVC) in five sets (25-14, 18-25, 25-17, 26-28, 15-12) Monday afternoon at Houck Field House.
 
With the win Monday, SEMO won its fifth straight series of the 2020-21 campaign. The Redhawks have now won the last four meetings with the Governors dating back to Oct. 4, 2019.
 
SEMO also distanced itself from Austin Peay in the Ohio Valley Conference standings as the two institutions entered the series tied for third.
 
Claire Ochs dished out 44 assists on her birthday as the Redhawks hit at a pace of .206. Ochs also added eight kills, eight digs and a block in the five-set victory.
 
Laney Malloy led the SEMO attack with 19 kills on a .228 hitting percentage with 11 digs for her seventh double-double of the season. Zoey Beasley chipped in 15 kills with a career-best nine digs.
 
Talia Gouard (.455) and Colby Greene each had six kills.
 
Trailing 2-1, Austin Peay gutted out the fourth set, 28-26, to force a decisive fifth frame. The fourth set featured 11 ties and six lead changes.
 
SEMO jumped out to a 7-2 advantage in the fifth set after a 5-0 run.
 
Kills from Greene and Beasley along with a Govs setting error extended the advantage to 10-4.
 
Austin Peay clawed within two points (11-9) after kills from Taylor McInerney and a service ace from Maggie Keenan.
 
Malloy then pounded a kill before Ochs elected for a winner from Kayla Closset to make the score 13-10.
 
Malloy added another kill after a SEMO service error to bring on match point at 14-11. The Govs fended off match point before a block assist from Greene and Maggie Adams sealed the victory.
 
SEMO hit a match-best .429 in the fifth and final set. Beasley had four kills and Malloy had three in the crucial stanza.
 
SEMO opened the match strong, hitting .310 in the first set. The Redhawks started the match with a 13-6 advantage. A 3-0 rally extended the lead to 18-8.
 
Greene and Beasley connected on consecutive kills to make the edge 20-10. Gouard would then knock a kill before an Izzy Lukens ace to claim the set, 25-14.
 
Austin Peay evened the match at 1-1 with a 25-18 second set. Trailing, 14-12, the Governors went on a 5-0 run to pull ahead 16-14. Austin Peay then widened the margin to 22-16 after a 6-0 rally.
 
SEMO would come as close as 22-18 after a block assist by Gouard and Ochs before the Governors rattled off three straight points.
 
SEMO rebounded and hit a .333 in the third set to take a 2-1 lead in the match. With a 14-7 edge in the set, Austin Peay chipped away at the lead with a 6-0 run to make the score 14-13.
 
Three straight kills from Malloy, Ochs and Beasley then regrew the SEMO margin to 20-14.
 
Addy McAleer would punctuate a 3-0 SEMO run with a winner to make the lead 23-15. She finished with a career-best three kills and 11 digs.
 
Malloy then buried back-to-back kills to grab the set, 25-17.
 
Trailing in the fourth set, 17-16, SEMO benefited from a 4-0 run to pull ahead 20-17. The Governors took a timeout before scoring the next three points to knot the frame at 20-20.
 
Chloe Stitt hit a kill to tie the set at 22-22 before kills from Beasley and Malloy brought on match point, 24-22.
 
Facing match point, the Governors pulled ahead 25-24 after a pair of SEMO errors coupled with a kill from Keenan.
 
Malloy and McAleer each tallied kills to bring the lead back to the home side, 26-25.
 
Three straight kills from the Governors then forced a fifth set. Kaylah Jackson's two kills bookended a Brooke Moore rally stopper to take the set, 28-26.
 
Aces were tied in the match at eight apiece. Ally Dion notched three while Malloy added a pair. The freshmen trio of McAleer, Lukens and Kayla Closset combined for three.
 
Dion made her second-straight start at libero with the absence of Tara Beilsmith. Dion finished with a match-high and season-best 27 digs with five assists.
 
Closset chipped in nine digs.
 
SEMO notched its second-highest block total in 2020-21 with 11.0 Monday. Maggie Adams had six while Gouard and Greene each finished with five.
 
The Redhawks next hit the road for the final time in the 2020-21 regular season. SEMO will face Eastern Illinois in Charleston, Illinois, on March 21 and 22 before returning to Cape Girardeau for the Redhawks home finale on March 28 and 29.