The story of the Kent State volleyball team this season has been one of sorrow. Blowouts, sweeps and choking away two-set leads have all been staples this season for the Flashes, but the team found itself in the clutches of victory during a two-game set with their rival, the Akron Zips.
On Friday, the Flashes welcomed their rivals into the M.A.C. Center for the first game of a two-game weekend slate where the winner would claim the Wagon Wheel. In a series that dates back to 2009, the Flashes have won 19 of 31 matchups, but have lost three in a row dating back to 2022.
The Flashes stumbled in its first game against the Zips, never scoring above 18 points with 16 errors. Akron piled on KSU in set three for a 10-2 lead that would boil over to a 25-14 Zip blowout win.
“I think we were still in the mindset from the Bowling Green game,” coach Haley Eckerman said. “It’s a new game, and we need to move forward.”
Junior outside hitter Mackenzie McGuire led the Flashes on offense with 19 kills and also contributed five digs. McGuire leads the team with 204 kills.
With all the Flashes have gone through this year, it would be easy for Eckerman and her team to give up on game two against Akron after suffering a sweep in the opener. The Flashes had lost 18 consecutive ball games heading into Saturday’s contest, and only the players and coaching staff themselves knew where their minds were heading into what could have been a 19th consecutive loss
“We focused on taking care of our own individual job,” Eckerman said. “We didn’t watch film on them on day two, and we talked about what each person was going to bring to the table.”
Through all the noise and all the turmoil the Flashes have mucked through, they managed to show up and show out against the rival team. In a game that needed all five sets to decide a winner, the Flashes would have to play tougher and cleaner than the Zips. Set one saw the Flashes jump to a 10-5 lead that saw four McGuire serves result in points for the team. The Zips would attempt a late comeback forcing the Flashes to score late on two kills from McGuire and junior setter Kendall White in a 25-21 set one KSU win.
Set two proved how hard this Flashes team can work. After the Zips opened the set 7-4, the Flashes would embark on a 15-4 run that sent the second set to the home team, 25-14.
With two gritty set wins, the Flashes were just 25 points away from its first win since sweeping NJIT Sept 6.
Set three had a whole team and the course of a whole season riding on it, and the Flashes would need to keep playing clean to taste victory.
If sets one and two showed the toughness of the Flashes, set three showed the resolve of the Akron Zips. After the Flashes opened the set with an 8-3 lead, the Zips roared back to tie the game at 12 before venturing on a 4-0 run that proved crucial when the game turned into trading of points that saw Akron win 26-24 in extra action.
The Flashes would have to wait for their second win of the season, and set four must have reminded the Flashes of how the season has gone. Akron led from the first point to the 25th in a 25-8 rout that swung all of the momentum the Flashes had captured back to the Zips.
Sets three and four were absolute back breakers for KSU. The golden shine of victory was in the hands of the Flashes, but Akron had come and stolen it away in familiar fashion. Set three was a blown lead, and set four was a blow out.
Heading into a do or die roulette with the rival, the mindset of the Flashes was “going back to the basics,”Eckerman said. “We had to reset and focus on two points at a time and not worry about the points they were scoring.”
In a set that saw kills from five different Flashes (Burell, White, Miller, McGuire, Mechura), the Flashes would finally be able to ring the bell in a 15-9 fifth set win. It had been 58 days since the last time the Kent State volleyball team had won a game.
“It’s a good feeling,” Eckerman said. “We’ve shown growth.”
McGuire, once again, led the Flashes in kills with 17. White was one kill away from a triple-double, posting nine kills, 37 assists, and 12 digs.
The Flashes are 2-21 on the year and tied for last place in the Mid American Conference standings with Miami and Northern Illinois. All three teams own a 1-12 conference play record.
The Flashes will remain in Kent for a one-game match with the Ohio Bobcats Tuesday. The Bobcats are 11-13 on the year (7-6 in conference play) and won their last game in five sets against the Central Michigan Chippewas, who are currently second in the MAC standings.
With all five games remaining on the Flashes’ schedule being conference games, the Flashes aren’t just playing for pride. If the Flashes were to take at least two, or possibly even three games, and the RedHawks or Huskies continued to drop MAC games, KSU would avoid a dreaded last place finish.
“We knocked Akron out of a chance at getting into the MAC Tournament,” Eckerman said. “Let’s shake some things up.”
Gage Wellman is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected] or @GageWellmanKSTV on X.
