Box Score In the span of five days, the Webster University volleyball team suffered a second gut-wrenching loss to Greenville College. The Gorloks, who lost a 3-2 tie-breaker match to the Panthers on September 26, lost 3-1 this go round, at Greenville, IL, on October 1.
Down 1-0, after losing the first set 20-25, Webster fell behind, 2-7, to start the second set. The Gorloks pulled to within 8-11, but a 5-1 Panther run put them in a 9-16 hole. Webster went on an 8-2 run of its own, to inch within one at 17-18. The Gorloks made one more run, turning a 19-24 deficit to 22-24, before losing, 22-25.
Webster won the third set to make it 2-1 for the match. The Gorloks took a 3-0 lead before the Panthers closed to 8-7. Webster went on an 11-3 spree to take command of the set, 19-10. Greenville then reeled off five straight points to make it interesting, but Webster prevailed, 25-19.
The Gorloks had one more battle left them in them in the fourth, eventually losing the set, 21-25, and the match. Greenville took a 13-10 advantage before the Gorloks turned a 6-1 run into a 16-14 lead. Webster still led 20-17 before Greenville ran off six points to take control, 23-20, and the Panthers went on to ice the set, 25-21, and the match.
Jory Siebenmorgen (JR, Eureka, MO/Eureka HS) had 12 kills for the night to lead Webster and senior Rachel Nelson (Papillion, NE/LaVista South HS) had 11. Emily Knowles (JR, Belleville, IL/Belleville East HS) and Nelson each had two solo blocks and three block assists.
Maria Soffner (SO, Creve Coeur, MO/Incarnate Word Academy) and Katie O'Toole (JR, St. Louis, MO/Lutheran South HS) each had 21 digs for the Gorloks. Freshman Kelsey Hamann (Waterloo, IL/Waterloo HS) had 17 assists and fellow freshman Emmi Murphy (Springfield, MO/Central HS) had 14.
The Gorloks have won four straight SLIAC championships but the Panthers, the pre-season SLIAC coaches' favorite to win in 2015, have always been a force in the conference. Webster defeated Greenville for the championship in 2012 and 2011, but the Panthers broke the Gorloks' previous championship streak of four in a row with a win in 2010. The Gorloks had won four straight championships also from 2006-09.
Webster is now 6-2 in the SLIAC and 8-9 overall. Greenville started the season 1-5 but has won 11 straight to improve to 12-5, including 8-0 in the SLIAC. Webster will have a tri-match with a pair of SLIAC foes at Fontbonne University on October 3, facing the host Griffins and MacMurray College (IL).
