NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The 25th-ranked Lynn University volleyball team opened the 2023 campaign with 3-0 shutout of Bemidji State, Friday at the Ray Thrasher Classic, before dropping its second match of the day against 10th-ranked Missouri-St. Louis, 3-1.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Lynn is now 18-9 all-time in season-opening matches
- The Fighting Knights have won 13 of their last 14 openers
- Head coach Adam Milewski is now 7-1 in season openers during his eight-year tenure
 
Bemidji State – 3-0 (25-22, 25-13, 29-27)
- Lynn smacked 41 kills, hit .222, registered 44 digs and posted four service aces
- The Fighting Knights hit .364 in the second set
- The Beavers hit just .147 with 33 kills
- The Fighting Knights rallied from an early deficit in the first set behind a 5-0 run
- Junior Maria Cecilia Pinho smacked two kills for a 16-14 lead and Lynn used two late errors for the game one win
- Lynn never trailed in the second set and an 11-1 run handed it a 22-11 advantage
- Two late kills from graduate student Dayana Chara sealed the 25-13 victory
- The Beavers didn't fold in the third set and led 8-5 following a pair of Lynn errors
- Kills from Chara and Cecilia Pinho gave Lynn a 21-17 edge before Chara and graduate student Kenidy Howard posted back-to-back kills to grab the 29-27 win
 
FIGHTING KNIGHT STATS
- Chara hit .471 with 10 kills
- Howard hit .429 with eight kills
- Cecilia Pinho and graduate Paige Barash each finished with nine kills
- Graduate Emily Edwards handed out 34 assists with seven digs
- Junior Isabella Gentile led both teams with 17 digs
 
Missouri-St. Louis – 3-1 (17-25, 25-18, 20-25, 17-25)
- Lynn smacked 43 kills, hit .126, registered 47 digs and posted nine blocks
- After dropping the first set, Lynn rallied in the second behind 15 kills and a .520 hitting percentage
- However, the Fighting Knights hit just .065 over the final two sets
- Lynn opened leads of 7-3 and 13-7 in the opening set before Missouri closed on an 18-4 run to earn the win
- Junior Aline Olegario smacked two early kills in set two as Lynn grabbed a 7-2 lead
- A kill from Edwards and two more from Barash increased the Fighting Knights lead to 15-7
- Olegario smacked three more kills and joined Barash for a set-sealing block for a 25-18 win
- The Fighting Knights collected three-straight points for an 8-6 advantage in the third set
- The Tritons answered with a 5-0 run and pushed their lead to eight, 20-12, before winning 25-20
- Lynn took a 10-9 lead in the fourth and final set behind another three-straight points
- Missouri-St. Louis rebounded with a 7-1 run for a 16-11 lead
- The Tritons pushed their lead to eight on several occasions late in the set before winning 25-17
 
FIGHTING KNIGHT STATS
- Olegario finished with a career-high 12 kills and a .333 hitting percentage
- Barash added nine kills, while Howard and Cecilia Pinho each had six
- Edwards had 35 assists, while Gentile collected 15 digs
 
UP NEXT:
- Lynn returns to the court tomorrow when it plays Trevecca Nazarene at 2:00 pm and Alabama-Huntsville at 6:00 pm