IU Columbus Rebounds with Sweep at Midway Following Thriller at IU East

RICHMOND, Ind. / MIDWAY, Ky. – The IU Columbus volleyball team fought through a challenging River States Conference weekend, falling in a five-set thriller at IU East on Friday before responding with a commanding sweep at Midway University (Ky.) on Saturday afternoon.

The Crimson Pride move to 14-7 overall and 5-4 in RSC play, continuing to hold strong positioning in the conference standings.

Friday, 10/10: IU East 3, IU Columbus 2

IU Columbus came up just short in a marathon battle with IU East, dropping a tight five-set contest (26-24, 23-25, 25-20, 25-27, 17-19).

Ruthie Bingham powered the Crimson Pride with a match-high 27 kills on .343 hitting, adding three total blocks and 29 points in an outstanding effort. Cora Baker anchored the defense with 28 digs and 14 kills while setter Bailey Stevens dished out 31 assists and added 20 digs.

Sadie Egan contributed a double-double with 11 kills and 25 assists, and Journee Brown added six kills and five block assists. Defensively, Alyvia Luce and Mikaela Salinas each reached double figures in digs as the Crimson Pride tallied 119 as a team.

Despite out-hitting the Red Wolves in three of five sets, IU Columbus couldn't quite close out the decisive fifth, falling 19-17 in the tiebreaker.

Saturday, 10/11: IU Columbus 3, Midway 0

Less than 24 hours later, IU Columbus bounced back in dominant fashion, sweeping Midway (25-9, 25-18, 25-8) to cap the road trip on a high note.

The Crimson Pride came out firing, hitting .391 in the opening set and holding the Eagles to negative percentages in every frame.

Jada Munro led the charge with 8 kills on .333 hitting, while Abigail Watson and Olivia Embry each chipped in 4 kills apiece. Maria Otero made her presence felt from the service line with 6 aces, and Cora Baker added 4 more as IU Columbus finished with 17 service aces as a team.

Setters Bailey Stevens and Sadie Egan shared the offense with 12 assists each, and Mikaela Salinas led the back row with 9 digs. The Crimson Pride out-dug Midway 37–27 and recorded 10 total blocks in the efficient sweep that lasted just over an hour.