NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Southeast Missouri women's volleyball (10-3, 1-0 OVC) captured its first Ohio Valley Conference victory of the 2021 campaign, 3-2 (20-25, 25-17, 25-11, 23-25, 15-10), over Tennessee State (8-3, 0-2 OVC) Friday night at Kean Hall.
 
SEMO won the second and third sets while the host Tigers took the first and fourth frames to force fifth set action in the Music City.
 
Laney Malloy paced the Redhawks with 19 kills and 20 digs to go along with three service aces, two assists and a block.
 
With the 20 digs, Malloy surpassed 1,000 digs in her career. The senior outside hitter from Roselle, Illinois, entered the match with 994 career digs (982 at SEMO, 12 at UIC).
 
Malloy, this week's Sports Imports/American Volleyball Coaches Association Women's Division I National Player of the Week, is the first Redhawk since Krissa Gearring (2014-2017) to join the 1,000 kills, 1,000 digs club.
 
Malloy previously overcame 1,000 kills at Western Michigan's Discover Kalamazoo Classic (Sept. 3-4).
 
Zoey Beasley added 16 kills Friday on a .289 clip with five digs.
 
Knotted at 2-2, SEMO edged the Tigers, 15-10 in the fifth set.
 
Tennessee State utilized a 4-1 run to take an early 6-3 lead in the final frame. Malloy then knocked a kill to make the margin, 6-4.
 
Talia Gouard added a pair of kills to cut the TSU edge to 8-6.
 
The Redhawks then responded with a 4-0 run with Izzy Lukens serving to pull ahead 10-8. Lukens registered a pair of aces to bookend kills from Beasley and Malloy.
 
Beasley and Malloy connected on rally stoppers to increase the lead to 12-9. The duo each compiled three kills in the final set as SEMO hit at a hitting percentage of .350.
 
After a Tigers timeout, SEMO concluded the match with three of the final four points.
 
Greene slammed a kill before a TSU error. Closset secured the victory with an ace, 15-10.
 
TSU jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-20 opening set win. The Tigers hit a match-high .171 in the set.
 
SEMO had an early 10-7 edge after a kill by Beasley. Aleksandra Rojecka then hit a rally stopper to tie the frame at 15-15.
 
The Tigers finished the set on a 6-2 rally as a pair of kills from setter Claire Ochs cut the deficit to 21-19 and 23-20.
 
Kendall Washington hit a kill before a SEMO error, 25-20.
 
In the second set, the Redhawks utilized a 7-0 rally to widen the margin to 15-6. Ally Dion opened the run with an ace. Malloy notched a pair of kills and a solo block during the sequence while Gouard and Ochs teamed up for a block assist.
 
Malloy then placed consecutive aces to extend the advantage to 20-7.
 
Elissa Moylan pushed the lead to 23-11 with a kill as the Tigers came as close as 24-17.
 
SEMO tied the match at 1-1 after a TSU error, 25-17.
 
The Redhawks registered a match-best .450 hitting clip in the third set with 11 kills compared to a pair of errors.
 
SEMO led from the get-go and went up 15-6 after a rally stopper by Gouard.
 
Malloy added a kill before a Dion ace made the edge 17-6.
 
Greene then slammed home a kill to take the stanza, 25-11.
 
In the fourth frame, SEMO fought back to come within a point before TSU claimed the set, 25-23, to force a decisive fifth set.
 
A 4-0 run by the Tigers widened the margin to 20-13.
 
Trailing 22-14, SEMO went on a 7-1 run to pull within two, 23-21. Beasley connected on three kills during the rally and Ochs placed an ace.
 
A Redhawks error brought on set point at 24-21. Moylan then blasted a kill before a Tigers error made the score 24-23.
 
TSU then won the set, 25-23, after a SEMO error following a timeout.
 
Gouard chipped in nine kills Friday while Greene finished with eight and four digs.

Ochs dished out 47 assists with 13 digs and four blocks.
 
Moylan and Beasley each tallied four blocks while Gouard and Greene each added three.
 
Tara Beilsmith accumulated 19 digs. Dion and Closset each had five.
 
Aniya Williams led TSU with 14 kills. Washington, a former Redhawk, had 10 kills.
 
Sofia Garcia-Guerrios recorded 37 assists and 14 digs. Gina Rivera Ortiz had a match-high 21 digs.
 
SEMO outscored Tennessee State, 78.5-60. The Redhawks posted 11 aces after finishing the non-conference slate with 12 in the final two matches.
 
SEMO out blocked the Tigers, 10-8.
 
The Redhawks conclude their 2021 OVC opening series with Tennessee State Saturday afternoon at Kean Hall. First service is set for 2 p.m., CT.
 
Followng this weekend's series, SEMO returns home for a three-match week. The Redhawks host UT Martin in their first home OVC match of the season Sept. 29 at 6 p.m., CT at Houck Field House. SEMO then concludes the week with a Friday, Saturday series against Belmont Oct. 1-2. Match times for the weekend series are 6 p.m. and 2 p.m.