Women's Volleyball rattled off three straight sets to win their 2021 home opener on Tuesday in Atchison.

The Ravens defeated the Kansas Wesleyan University Coyotes 3-1, bouncing back after a first-set loss.

A close first set saw the two teams battle back and forth, with momentum swings finally settling in the favor of the Coyotes. 

KWU led 19-17, but the Ravens answered with 4-straight points to take a 21-19 lead. The home squad held a 2-point advantage at 23-21, but the Coyotes went ahead 24-23. The Ravens held off the first set point, but KWU ultimately took the first set 26-24.

The Ravens answered in a big way in the second set, taking an early lead and making it stick throughout the set to tie the match 1-1.

The Ravens built an early 11-6 lead and carried a 5-point advantage for most of the set. KWU battled back to 17-15, forcing a Ravens timeout, but the home side closed out the set on an 8-3 run for the 25-18 win.

The Ravens won a thrilling third set. They took a 10-8 lead early in the match, but the Coyotes came back to take an 11-10 lead, holding that lead until the Ravens tied the setup at 19-19. After KWU went back in front 21-19, the Ravens powered back in front with the help of two aces by Megan Luby. With the score tied 24-24, the Ravens were able to take the set thanks to a Haylie Dickerson kill and an attack error by the Coyotes to win the set 26-24.

The Ravens finished the match off with a convincing fourth set. The Ravens jumped out to a 5-2 lead and held a solid advantage at 19-15 later in the set. The Coyotes fought back, pulling within a point at 20-19 to force a timeout by Ravens Head Coach Victoria Hurtt. The Ravens came out of the timeout hot, scoring 4-straight points and winning the set 25-20, and taking the match 3-1.

The Ravens attack was led by Mary Pat Taylor and Joslyn Lewis, who each had 14 kills. Dickerson had 13 kills, and she and Lewis had 4 blocks. Maggie Schoening recorded 8 kills and 4 blocks. Overall, the Ravens finished with a .189 hitting percentage, narrowly besting the Coyotes' .188 percentage.

Luby, after being named the Heart of America Defensive Player of the Week, had 21 digs to go along with 5 aces.

The win moves the Ravens to 4-1 on the season. They'll play in the Labor Day Classic in Sioux City, Iowa on Sept. 3-4 for their next matches, and will return home for Heart of America action against Evangel on Tuesday, Sept. 14.