Mid-American Conference

2019 Championship Central
2019 MAC Volleyball Tournament Bracket

No. 7 Buffalo 3, No. 6 Akron 0
Box Score
VIDEO: Scott Smitth, Buffalo Head Coach
VIDEO: Hannah Watson, Buffalo Libero

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The University at Buffalo volleyball team swept Akron, 3-0, in the first round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament at the Stroh Center on Thursday night. It was the Bulls' first MAC Tournament victory since 2009.

Buffalo set the tone early, cruising to a 25-15 first-set victory. The Bulls went on to win the second set, 25-20, and the third set, 25-21.  

With the Bulls leading 13-11 in the first set, a kill by Rachel Sanks sparked a 5-0 UB run to extend the lead to 18-11 and the Bulls never looked back.

In the second set, Jenna Sonnenberg served up an ace to put the Bulls ahead, 6-5, and they never trailed again. Akron cut the UB lead to 15-14, but the Bulls responded with an 8-2 run to take a 23-16 lead and ice the set.

The Bulls had to rally to win the third set after trailing 19-16. Following an Akron error, UB got three straight kills by Sanks, Scout McLerran and Paige Beck, respectively, to put the Bulls ahead, 20-19, and deflate the Zips. Monika Simkova provided the dagger with a kill to end it for Buffalo.

"I'm excited about getting the win in three straight," head coach Scott Smith said. "We've been taking five sets all season, so it's a really good time to take care of business in three sets."

Sanks had 13 kills and McClearan had 28 assists to lead UB.

The seventh-seeded Bulls will next face third-seeded Bowling Green tomorrow night.

Courtesy of UB Sport Info