CLAYTON, Mo. – After a wait of 459 days, the Webster University volleyball team opened its 2020-21 season here Saturday afternoon and the Gorloks didn't disappoint, sweeping Fontbonne University in three sets (25-20, 25-23, 25-22) in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action at Mabee Gymnasium.
 
Saturday's match was the Gorloks' first since Nov. 9, 2019 against Westminster (Mo.) College in the SLIAC Tournament semifinals, which was played at Greenville University.
 
Despite the long lay-off between matches, the Gorloks (1-0, 1-0 SLIAC) returned to competition and showed little rust playing a team that was playing its third match of the season as Webster recorded 28 kills, had 10 service aces and outblocked the Griffins, 5-0.
 
Leading the way for the Gorloks in Saturday's match offensively were freshman right side hitter Alexis Wolf (Quincy, Ill./Quincy) and sophomore outside hitter Lauren Borik (Belleville, Ill./Althoff) as those two combined for 17 kills, 12 digs and hit .240. Wolf making her collegiate debut finished with nine kills, three digs and hit .391, while Borik added eight kills, nine digs, three blocks and hit .129.
 
Perhaps the difference in the match was serving as the Gorloks had 10 aces and five service errors, while Fontbonne finished with four aces and nine service errors and that four-error difference played a role in Webster's victory.
 
Defensively, Webster's defense was paced by the play of junior libero Kyra Gensel (Clarkton, N.C./Harrells Christian) and sophomore defensive specialist Tori Cichelero (St. Louis, Mo./Ursuline) as they combined for 31 digs and four aces as Gensel had 18 digs and two aces and Cichelero tallied 13 digs and two aces in the win.
 
As a team, Webster hit .117, while Fontbonne hit .092, including hitting .023 in the second set.
 
Junior setter Ali Spohr (Quincy, Ill./Quincy) and senior setter Emma Larson (Bellevue, Neb./Bellevue West) combined for 21 assists, four aces and five digs as Spohr, who was the starting setter, had 12 assists, two aces and three digs and Larson finished with nine assists, two aces and two digs.
 
Fontbonne had a match-high 38 kills and Jadyn Fitzgerald and Hannah Gallagher each had 11 kills to pace the home team. Gallagher also had a double-double as she recorded 13 digs and Emma Pramik tallied 14 digs as FBU outdug the Gorloks, 55-50.
 
Webster will open the home portion of its 2020-21 season next Saturday, Feb. 20 as they host Greenville in an 11 a.m. match at Grant Gymnasium. Due to SLIAC rules, no fans will be permitted at indoor sporting events this season.
 
Set 1: Webster got off to a strong start as Borik scored the first point of the season for the Gorloks on a kill and Cichelero followed with an ace to give the Gorloks a 2-0 lead. That lead would eventually grow to 9-3. The Gorloks lead would grow to as much as eight points at 18-10 following a kill by Borik. FBU, though, would respond with a 6-2 run capped by an ace from Jessica Molden to pull within 20-16. A kill from Wolf, an ace from Cichelero and an attack error by Gallagher gave the Gorloks a 23-16 lead. The Griffins would then score four of the next five points to drop WU's lead to 24-20, but a kill from Borik sealed the Gorloks' 25-20 set win. In the set, Webster hit .176 and FBU hit .146. Borik had four kills and hit .363 as she didn't record an error on 11 attack attempts.
 
Set 2: Fontbonne jumped out to an 8-4 lead in the second set, before the Gorloks used four errors and an ace from Spohr to score five straight points and take a 9-8 lead. The Griffins would come back and score four straight points to take a 12-9 lead. WU would answer by scoring four of the next five points, including capping the run with an ace from junior middle hitter Kylie Burke (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West) to tie the set at 13. The Griffins wouldn't go away as they scored six straight points to take an 18-13 lead. WU responded with a 7-1 run to take a 20-19 lead. FBU retied the set at 20 on a kill by Fitzgerald and after WU scored three straight points to take a 23-20 lead, the Griffins would rally by scoring four consecutive points to tie the set at 23. An error by FBU and a kill by sophomore outside/middle hitter Jordan Mueller (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central) helped WU cap the 25-23 set win. In the set, WU hit .075 and FBU hit .023.
 
Set 3: The Gorloks jumped in front 5-1 in the third set and after FBU tied the set at 5, 6, 7 and 8, the Gorloks used a 4-2 run capped by back-to-back kills from Spohr and Borik to take a 12-10 lead. The Griffins would answer as they scored six of the next 11 points to pull within 17-16. An ace by Spohr capped a 2-0 run by WU to give the Gorloks a 20-16 lead. FBU, though, responded with a 6-2 run to tie the set at 22 and force the Gorloks to call a timeout. Following the timeout, Wolf broke the deadlock with a kill and after an error by Olivia Tallo gave the Gorloks a 24-22 lead, Burke would complete the sweep thanks to an ace to cap the 25-22 win. In the set, WU was outhit, .118 to .103, but the Gorloks had three blocks, including two from sophomore middle hitter Julia Frey (Teutopolis, Ill./Teutopolis). Webster had three aces and one service error, while FBU had one ace and three service errors.