PIKEVILLE, Ky. -- Led by Savanna Zakman matching a career-high with seven aces, the University of Pikeville volleyball team overpowered Midway with a 3-0 shutout win on Thursday night.

Zakman got things started on serve to open the first set and quickly had the Bears at a 3-0 lead. She didn't let off the gas from there, adding a match-high 29 assists to her totals as UPIKE built leads as high as 11 points in the first set, 12 in the second and 13 in the third.

Fourteen points was the most the Eagles could muster in a set as the Bears tallied the shutout with wins of 25-14, 25-13 and 25-12.

Sydney Hall led all players with 10 kills, putting them down on 17 attempts with just two errors to post a .471 hitting percentage. Add in Cassidy Tackett going 7 for 9 on the attack and Zakman going 5 for 9, and it's easy to see how the Bears outhit Midway .431 to .090 as a team.

On a night where it was a struggle for points, Rachel Timperman stood out for the Eagles (6-4) with three kills at a .250 clip, Courtney George dished out 12 assists and Hannah Payne found seven digs.

UPIKE (13-8) was led by Rachel Murphy on defense with eight digs, while Zakman was close behind with seven. UPIKE outblocked Midway 9-1, led by five blocks from Hall. Other Bears with multiple aces were Cecilia Ray with three and Kaitlyn Welsh with two.

The Bears enjoyed big leads early in the first two sets as they felt the only real pressure in the final frame. Midway led as late as 8-7 and the score was tied shortly after at 9-9. But UPIKE went on a 7-1 run to give itself some breathing room, then at 18-12 it scored the last seven points of the match, ending things on two straight aces by Ray.

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The Bears return to Mid-South Conference play at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, hosting Cumberland (Tenn.) in UPIKE Gym.

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