CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri women's volleyball (14-2, 14-2 OVC) swept Murray State (5-11, 5-11 OVC), 25-22, 25-19, 25-18, Monday afternoon on Senior Day at Houck Field House.
 
With the victory, SEMO finalized its fate heading into the 2020-21 Ohio Valley Conference Championship Thursday and Friday in Morehead, Kentucky, on the campus of Morehead State. The #3-seeded Redhawks will take on #2 Jacksonville State (15-1, 15-1 OVC) Thursday in the first match of the semifinals at Johnson Arena at 2 p.m., CT.
 
Morehead State (15-1, 15-1 OVC) clinched the top seed Monday with a 3-0 sweep of Jacksonville State to claim a share of the 2020-21 OVC Regular Season Championship with the Gamecocks.
 
The Redhawk also extended its win streak to 14 matches with their eighth 3-0 sweep of the season (fourth consecutive) and seventh regular-season series sweep.
 
SEMO's 14 league wins in 2020-21 is the most in the past 13 seasons as the 2007 SEMO team finished with a mark of 15-5.
 
The Redhawks' OVC winning percentage of .875 is the highest since 2000, when SEMO was perfect in league play, 16-0 (1.000).
 
SEMO last finished an OVC slate with a record of 14-2 in 1995.
 
Zoey Beasley led the Redhawks attack Monday with 15 kills. Talia Gouard added nine kills and four block assists. Laney Malloy and Colby Greene each chipped in five rally stoppers.
 
Tied at 11-11 in the opening set, SEMO distanced itself from Murray State with a 4-1 run. Beasley slammed a kill to grow the lead to 17-14.
 
Consecutive kills from Gouard and Malloy before a Racers attack error widened the gap to 21-16.
 
Addy McAleer then pounded a kill and Murray State committed an attacking error to make the score, 23-18.
 
Greene added a rally stopper to bring on set point at 24-20. Murray State came as close as 24-22 before Beasley sealed the opening frame with a kill.
 
The Redhawks then commenced the second stanza with a slight 11-8 edge early before a 5-1 run pushed the advantage to 16-9. SEMO hit a match-high .214 in the middle frame Monday.
 
Malloy connected on a kill before teaming up for a senior block assist with Maggie Adams to make the SEMO lead 19-13.
 
Murray State cut the SEMO margin to 20-16 after consecutive Redhawk errors.
 
Beasley and Claire Ochs then finalized the set with consecutive kills, 25-19.
 
In the final set, Murray State started the frame with a 4-0 lead that SEMO responded back with a 5-0 run.
 
Leading by a point, 14-13, the Redhawks pulled away from the visiting Racers with a 5-0 rally. Gouard hit consecutive kills during the sequence and Ally Dion finished the run with a service ace.
 
A kill by Morgan Price followed by a Kolby McClelland service ace cut the SEMO advantage to 19-16.
 
The Redhawks then hit set point after a 5-0 run. McAleer placed consecutive aces in the rally before a block assist from Gouard and Ochs followed by a kill by Beasley.
 
Beasley then sealed the victory, 25-18, with a rally stopper.
 
Dion led three Redhawks with double-digit digs Monday, posting a match-high 21. Malloy added 18 and McAleer finished with 10.
 
Ochs ran the offense, dishing out 33 assists and eight digs.
 
SEMO outscored Murray State, 53-36, and also led the kills (39-24) and assists (37-23) differential.
 
The Racers finished with a dismal .008 hitting percentage and started the match with a -.024 in the first set and a .000 in the third set.
 
The Redhawks notched seven aces compared to the Racers four. Malloy led SEMO with a season-high three aces for the second-straight match. McAleer posted two and both Dion and Ochs had one each.
 
Murray State out blocked SEMO, 8-7. Gouard led SEMO with four while Malloy, Ochs and Adams each tallied two.
 
SEMO recognized senior Maggie Adams prior to Monday's regular-season finale for Senior Day. Adams finished with two kills, two blocks and three digs. The senior from Fenton, Missouri, now has 302 career blocks.
 
McClelland led the Racers with eight kills. Taylor Beasley, Zoey's sister, had a match-high five blocks. Callie Anderton registered 16 assists and Becca Fernandez finished with 18 digs.
 
SEMO will next compete in the 2020-21 OVC Championship Semifinals on Thursday against #2 Jacksonville State. First serve is set for 2 p.m., CT in the third meeting in 2020-21 between the two institutions.