Tatum, Saris Pace Hoosiers in Five-Set Thriller

Saturday, August 31

Kennesaw, Ga.

11:00 AM

Indiana University

2-0,0-0Big Ten

Wichita State

1-1,0-0AAC

Indiana

Wichita St.

Tatum, Saris Pace Hoosiers in Five-Set Thriller

8/31/2024 2:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

KENNESAW, Ga. – The Indiana Volleyball team (2-0, 0-0) needed its veteran arms to step up on Saturday (Aug. 31) morning, just 16 hours after winning its opening match of the season. Junior opposite Avry Tatum and senior outside hitter Mady Saris took it to heart, powering the Hoosiers to a 3-2 win (14-25, 25-18, 21-25, 25-12, 15-13) over a talented Wichita State squad.

Wichita State, a perennial 20-win team, made life hard on IU in the early goings at the KSU Convocation Center. The two teams traded runs across the first three sets before the Hoosiers settled in to control the final two games. As a team, IU hit .275 with 63 kills on 149 swings. The Hoosiers made 22 errors but hit over .420 in the last two sets.

Once it found its groove at the service line, IU picked up the pressure at the Wichita State defense. Senior setter Camryn Haworth led the way with four aces while junior outside hitter Candela Alonso-Corcelles tallied two. IU had 13 service errors but committed just three in the final two games of the match. The Shockers limited errors in serve-receive but struggled offensively in the middle of the contest.

The Hoosiers had more aces (9-8), more kills (63-50), more digs (54-49) and more blocks (9.0-8.0) than the Shockers. Struggles in serve-receive kept Wichita State in the match before IU's heavy arms took over in the final portions of the contest. IU had three players with 15+ kills, the first instance of that since September of 2018.

IU's opening weekend will take a quick pause before resuming on Monday night at Wilkinson Hall. UC Davis will travel down to Bloomington for IU's home opener. This will be the first of 15 matches at home this season and the first of five in the non-conference.

Set Breakdown
Set 1: Wichita State 25, Indiana 14
After keeping it close early on, IU fell apart in the middle of the set. Head coach Steve Aird pulled his struggling pins. The substitutes kept it close but eventually a fast paced Wichita State attack took over. IU hit .000 in game one while the Shockers pounded the ball at a .409 clip. IU had just seven kills.

• Wichita State went on a 12-5 run from the 6-5 mark to open up a massive eight-point lead. IU got the lead within six points but the Shockers' Emerson Wilford was lethal from the end line in the red zone. She served the advantage out to 24-14 before an IU service error closed the frame.

• Freshmen Reese Hazelton (outside hitter) and Avery Daum (right side) each made their collegiate debuts in the first set as substitutes.

Set 2: Indiana 25, Wichita State 18
The fortunes were turned in game two as IU's defense came to life to halt Wichita State's hitters. The Hoosiers dug 18 balls and terminated on 17 kills to open up a big lead. Avry Tatum had six kills on 10 errorless swings while Ramsey Gary had six digs to keep the long rallies going.

• IU opened the lead to four after a successful challenge on a net violation negated a kill from Wichita State. Immediately out of the review, the Shockers rolled off a four-point run to tie the match at 11-all.

• Mady Saris and Camryn Haworth put pressure on the home team from the service line with Wichita State forced to use both of its timeouts as the lead ballooned to six at 20-14. Haworth had an ace during the run while Saris forced Wichita State into the double block of Madi Sell and Candela Alonso-Corcelles.

Set 3: Wichita State 25, Indiana 21
Neither team refused to go down in the third game but a late Wichita State run put Aird and company against the walls on Saturday afternoon. Wichita State outhit IU .235-.200 despite an advantage in kills for the Hoosiers (14-11). The Shockers had five service aces in game three.

• The set was tight throughout before Wichita State aced Alonso-Corcelles and defensive specialist Emma Segal on back-to-back balls. Aird was forced into a timeout. Saris had a kill out of the break but Wichita State had two additional points, including an ace, to break it back open.

• Haworth served IU back into the set, down 21-23, after a pair of aces and a pair of kills from Saris. Wichita State closed out the set with back-to-back points to take the momentum in the match.

Set 4: Indiana 25, Wichita State 12
The Hoosiers played their best ball of the young season in game four, blowing the set open with some incredible pressure from the service line. IU had three service aces in the set while the offense hit at an electric .462 (15-3-26) rate. Tatum had five kills on six swings.

• Saris helped blow the set open with some movement on her serve causing issues for the Wichita State passers. IU's lead got up to 12-7 with the Shockers forced into an early timeout. Alonso-Corcelles came up later to extend the lead, using a pair of service aces to take full advantage.

• Sade Ilawole was the next in line to take the match over from the end line. She forced two Wichita State errors and an eventual overpass that led to a sneaky kill on a tip from Saris. Haworth closed out the frame with a kill of her own to take the match to five.

Set 5: Indiana 15, Wichita State 13
As they always are, the fifth set proved to be a nail biter. Both teams were effective offensively but IU forced enough pressure to hold onto a slim lead. Alonso-Corcelles found her groove with four kills, including the match winner, while Haworth dished out eight assists. Ava Vickers was part of two blocks in the frame.

• The Hoosiers went down 3-6 in the fifth set but Alonso-Corcelles took control from the service line to hand IU the advantage. She helped IU to five-straight points before the change, forcing Wichita State into a trio of attacking errors. Alonso-Corcelles scored the final three points of the match for IU to win 15-13.

Top Hoosier Performers
#13 Tatum, Avry
18 kills, .484 hitting percentage, 2 blocks, 1 ace

#10 Haworth, Camryn
51 assists, 4 aces, 5 digs, 6 kills

#4 Saris, Mady
17 kills, 3 digs, 1 ace

Notes to Know
• Avry Tatum tallied 18 kills to help the Hoosiers beat Wichita State on Saturday. Her previous best mark at IU was 17 in a win at Miami (Fla.) on Sept. 15, 2023. Her all-time career high is 22 from a match during her freshman season at Cincinnati in 2022. On the weekend, Tatum provided 34 kills (4.25 per set) while hitting .592.

• Camryn Haworth dished out 51 assists in Saturday's victory, the eighth 50-assist game of her career. On the weekend, she tallied 90 assists with the Hoosiers hitting a collective .326 in her offense. She now has 2,952 for her career as she closes in on joining the 3,000-assist club.

• On the day, Haworth had four service aces. It was the 10th time in her career that she's had four-or-more aces in a single match. She takes her career total to 168, just 30 away from breaking the all-time program mark of 197.

• Three different Hoosiers had 15+ kills – Tatum (18), Saris (17) and Alonso-Corcelles (15) – in Saturday's win. That's the first occurrence by an IU offensive trio since a win over Ball State in September of 2018. IU was led in that match by Huybers (18), Edwards (17) and Lofton (16).