DURANT, Okla. – In a thrilling rivalry matchup, the East Central University volleyball team traveled to Durant, Oklahoma to face off against the Southeastern University Savage Storm in Bloomer Sullivan Gymnasium. Despite Southeastern taking the first set, ECU emerged victorious with a hard-fought 3-1 victory on Tuesday.
 
The win lifts the Tigers to 6-9 overall and 1-3 in GAC play.
 
"We started a little slow but we worked hard to focus on earning our points and just doing or job," Head Coach Danielle Essix said. "I am proud of how we competed. Our goal is to be this team consistently because we have what it takes."
 
The Savage Storm came out of the gates firing on all cylinders in the opening set. ECU held on to a slim 8-7 lead early on, but SE used a 10-2 scoring run to turn a one-point deficit into a 17-10 lead for the Savage Storm. ECU could not find a way to get out of the hole, and SE would ultimately claim the first set with a score of 25-19 to take a 1-0 lead.
 
However, the tide began to turn in the second set as the Tigers found their rhythm. ECU pulled away early, establishing a commanding 12-4 lead that never wavered as they convincingly won the set 25-10, leveling the match at 1-1.
 
The third set proved to be the closest contest of the night with SE finding themselves trailing 18-11 at one point before they mounted an impressive comeback to narrow the gap late in the set, eventually knotting the score 20-all. But the Tigers did not back down, securing five of the final eight points to clinch the third set 25-13 and the 2-1 lead in the match.
 
The Tigers were in control right from the start of set four courtesy of a multitude of scoring runs, surging ahead 3-0, then 9-2, and even 17-5.  ECU never looked back, maintaining their dominance throughout the set to secure a compelling 25-11 win and the 3-1 match victory.
 
ECU had their best offensive performance of the season, notching a team-high .492 hitting percentage and three Tigers reaching double-digit kills.
 
Leading the group was Emma Strickland who recorded 24 kills, committing only two errors on 34 attempts for a .647 hitting percentage. Odalys Gonzalez was next with her double-double performance, collecting 16 kills and 13 digs while Jada Abercrombie had a career-high 15 kills. Julia Kabala amassed 55 assists and 10 digs for another double-double while Sydney Roshek led the back row defense with 19 digs.
 
The ECU volleyball team will return to Ada for a home GAC match against Northwestern Oklahoma State University on Thursday, Sept. 28 at 6 pm.