ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Lewis women's volleyball finished the Flyer Festival a perfect 4-0 with a pair of non-conference wins on Saturday (Sept. 12) at Neil Carey Arena. Lewis defeated Malone 25-12, 25-20, 25-16 and Minnesota State 25-21, 25-21, 25-18.

Lewis 3, Malone 0 (HTML Box / PDF Box)
Lewis cruised in the day's first match, sweeping the Malone Pioneers in an hour and 15 minutes. Nine different Flyers recorded a kill with seniors Alexis Davito (Crest Hill, Ill./Lockport) and Cassidy Parsons (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial) leading the way with eight each.

The match featured only three lead changes. Lewis took a quick 10-2 lead in the first set for the easy win. In the second, the Flyers rallied from a 9-4 deficit thanks to a run of four points and two runs of three points to go up 15-12. Four straight aces by senior Morgan Cebula (Stevens Point, Wis./Stevens Point Area) highlighted the third set.

"We had several players come in and play well," Lewis head coach Lorelee Smith said of the win over Malone.

Lewis out-hit Malone .292 to .103.

Lewis 3, Minnesota State 0 (HTML Box / PDF Box)
The nightcap ended in the same result but featured more drama. The Mavericks looked like they were going to tie the match at two when they held a 17-11 in the second lead as Lewis asked for time. Whatever Lewis head coach Lorelee Smith said in the huddle sure worked. The Flyers came out of the break on a 6-1 run. A five-point stretch came later to give Lewis a 22-19 lead. Davito and Parsons each had an ace in the comeback as they did the majority of the serving in the big runs.

Junior Nicole Yuede (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell North) had a match-high 19 digs. Freshman Elizabeth Hyland (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central) led Lewis with 11 kills while adding eight digs. Davito pitched in six kills and three key aces.

"We had energy throughout even when we got down," Smith said. "Defensively we had an effective block and combined that with some big digs in the back row."

Lewis improves to 7-1. Minnesota State falls to 5-2. Malone falls to 3-5. Lewis returns to the court on Wednesday at St. Francis in a non-conference match.

A 10-member Flyer Festival All-Tournament Team was named. Below are the members:
Ellie Van De Steeg – Minnesota State ?
Krista Hassing – Minnesota State
?Jackie Oestreich – Ohio Dominican ?
Mallory Adams – Malone?
Bri Civiero – Rollins
Taryn Trubich – Maryville 
Maddie Timmermann – Maryville 
Aly Schneider (Granger, Ind./Penn) - Lewis
Alexis Davito (Crest Hill, Ill./Lockport) – Lewis
Nicole Yuede (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell North) – Lewis