Alexis McMurtrey (9) sets the ball for a spike against Columbia International at Quinn Coliseum on Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021. The EOU volleyball women beat out the visiting team in three clean sets for a score of 3-0.

LA GRANDE — The Eastern Oregon University volleyball program defended its home court in a close rivalry matchup this week.

The Mountaineers defeated the College of Idaho in four sets in its home opener on Tuesday, Sept. 13, improving to 12-1 on the year and 5-0 in conference play — the team is riding a 12-game winning streak. Eastern defeated the College of Idaho 25-18, 22-25, 25-19 and 25-12.

Eastern controlled the tempo right out of the gates, building up a solid 14-6 lead midway through the set. After the Mountaineers forced set point at 24-14, the Yotes rattled off a 4-0 run to tighten things up late in the frame. A kill by Madison Morgan assisted by Alexis McMurtrey ended the set 25-18 in favor of Eastern.

In the second set, the College of Idaho looked poised to bounce back in the match. The Yotes never trailed throughout the set, forcing the Mountaineers on their back heels. The set was neck-and-neck through a 7-6 start, but the College of Idaho managed to rattle off a 10-4 run to build a commanding lead. A nice rally by Eastern, which included two service aces by Alexis McMurtrey, helped cut the deficit to 23-20 as the set came down to the wire. A kill by Brenna Hawkins of the College of Idaho ultimately ended the frame 25-22 in favor of the Yotes.

As in the first set, Eastern built a steady early lead in the third frame and never allowed the Yotes to claw back into contention. The Mountaineers led by about five points throughout the entirety of the set and ultimately won 25-19 on a kill by Cambree Scott.

The College of Idaho gave Eastern a tough run in the third set, trailing just 12-10 midway through. A big rally revolving around the ball movement of McMurtrey ultimately propelled the Mountaineers to a 21-11 lead late in the match. Eastern scored the final four points of the set to walk off with a 25-12 victory that ended the match in favor of the home team.

McMurtrey finished the match with a game-high three aces and led Eastern with 24 assists. Preslee Jensen was the game’s top player in kills, recording 16. Kara Clayton recorded five blocks and Hailey Arritola tallied 22 digs.

Coming off the home victory, Eastern will aim to defend home court once more this coming weekend. The Mountaineers will host Warner Pacific at 7 p.m. on Sept. 16 and face Multnomah at 5 p.m. on Sept. 17.