The Emporia State volleyball team made sure that the third time wasn’t the charm for Pittsburg State on Thursday night.
Now, the Hornets hope the good fortune comes their way tonight.
ESU opened NCAA Tournament play with a dominating 30-25, 30-28, 30-25 victory over PSU on Thursday in Kirksville, Mo. It was the Hornets’ third consecutive win over the Gorillas this season.
“We knew the third one was going to be tough,” ESU sophomore Arica Shepard said, “but we came out and did what we were supposed to do.”
With the victory, ESU advanced to take on top-seeded Truman tonight. The Bulldogs swept Albany State on Thursday.
The Hornets have traveled to Kirksville the last two weekendsonly to lose 3-2 and 3-1 to the Bulldogs in their home gym.
It hasn’t stopped many of ESU’s players from wanting one final shot at fourth-ranked Truman.
“It’s a game we really want to win,” Shepard said. “That would be my one goal this season is to beat them.”
“At their home court, they’re a pretty confident team,” ESU coach Bing Xu added, “but we would like to play the better team.”
The Hornets benefited from a good start Thursday, jumping out to a 12-7 lead and never trailing after that.
ESU had a .419 attack percentage in Game One.
“That only builds your confidence,” ESU junior Hannah Carter said, “when you get going and everything feels right.”
Carter made sure the Hornets would get through a tough Game Two.
The middle hitter had 10 of the Hornets’ first 19 points, finishing with 11 by herself in the second game.
“She did very well,” Xu said. “She carried our team in the middle part.”
ESU took a 25-20 lead, but a PSU run cut the advantage all the way down to 29-28.
Brittney Miller finished off the game with a kill to give the Hornets the two-point win.
ESU kept the momentum from there, never trailing in its match-clinching 30-25 victory in Game Three.
“We told them, ‘There’s no ball you cannot touch,’ and they really did it,” Xu said. “Every single ball they tried to get a touch.
“I’m really proud of this group.”
Shepard led ESU with 20 kills, while Carter had her best match of the season off the bench.
She finished with 16 kills and an impressive .650 attack percentage. The junior also had six blocks.
Ting Liu added 53 assists, while Amy Byfield led the team with 22 digs.
First serve for tonight’s match is set for 7 p.m. at Truman’s Pershing Arena.
“We just need to get in there and get it done,” Carter said, “because we know we can do it.”
NCAA Tournament
First Round
Thursday at Kirksville, Mo.
(5) Pittsburg State 25 28 25
(4) Emporia State 30 30 30
Records — PSU 28-10, ESU 28-8.