Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
1-0,0-0Sun Belt
Niagara
0-1,0-0MAAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Niagara | 18 | 8 | 16 | 0 |
| Marshall | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Herd Volleyball Opens Marshall Invitational with Pair of Sweeps
8/28/2026 9:30:00 PM | Volleyball
Barnett with a double-double, Smith 16 kills against Bucknell
Box Score (PDF) VS Niagara | Box Score (PDF) VS Bucknell | Championship Fund
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Marshall University Volleyball team (2-0) opened its season in the Marshall Invitational with a pair of sweeps (25-18, 25-8, 25-16) over Niagara and Bucknell (25-19, 31-29, 25-21) on Friday in the Cam Henderson Center.
A good day for the Herd, Herd Volleyball Head Coach Heather Stout said. I think we leveled up the pace on our serves. We were a little more aggressive. It took until set two of Niagara to do that. The ball started tuning up and that got us extremely offensive. We finished the match .500 and then against Bucknell I think we did a good job getting aggressive behind the service line. Then at the end of the game we were finding the hot hitters. Maddie (Smith) had a hellacious match (against Bucknell). Then our middles opened them up down the stretch.
Marshall 3, Niagara 0
Emma Barnett finished with a team-high nine kills as Marae Reily finished with eight finishes and a .571 hitting percentage. Kahlea Carvalho registered a team-best 16 assists with Maddie Smith sitting at nine digs and Beatrice Ciccarelli at three blocks.
Marshall trailed 5-1 to Niagara, but rattled off nine of the next 12 points, ending with a Reilly kill, to take a 10-8 lead. The Purple Eagles tied the match at 11-11, but the Herd never trailed the rest of the way as home side took the opening set 25-18 with Isabella Nieves feeding an assist to Barnett for the final kill of the frame.
The second set was tied twice early, but it was all MU. The Green and White captured 15 of the final 18 points to take a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-8 victory in the set. The Herd finished the second stanza with a .619 hitting percentage with 14 kills and just one error.
In the third, Marshall trailed after opening point, but after a Reilly kill and a Niagara setting error, never trailed the rest of the way. The Herd took its biggest lead of the set at nine points (23-14) on a Purple Eagle attacking error. MU closed out the set with a score of 25-16 to take the team's opening match.
Marshall 3, Bucknell 0
Smith was dominant in the contest with a match-high 16 kills on 28 attacks with just two errors and a .500 hitting percentage. Barnett registered a double-double with 12 kills and 13 digs with Reilly hitting .778 in the contest on seven kills and nine attacks.
The first set saw MU jump out to a 13-7 lead, but the Bison answered with an 8-1 run to take a 15-14 advantage halfway through the set. The Herd rallied back by capturing 11 of the final 15 points to take the opening frame 25-19.
The second set was a back-and-forth affair that saw the score tied 15 times. However, after trailing 24-23, Marshall staved off six set points and took the second 31-29 to take a 2-0 advantage.
The third set saw the two sides tied seven times in the first 24 points as the Herd and Bison sat deadlocked at 12-12. Marshall utilized a 6-0 run capped off by a pair of kills from Smith to take an 18-12 lead and not look back, finishing off the set 25-21 to seal the match and the perfect opening day.
UP NEXT
Marshall closes out the Marshall Invitational on Saturday at 5 p.m. against Ohio.
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