Volleyball Recap: Incarnate Word Academy Falls Despite Big Games from Kendall Stroer and Avery Buckley + How To Watch

After flying high against Lutheran on Wednesday, Incarnate Word Academy came back down to earth. The Red Knights fell just short of the Mater Dei Knights by a score of 2-1 on Thursday. The Red Knights have struggled against the Knights recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.

Incarnate Word Academy started the match hot and won the first set, but they struggled down the stretch and lost the last two. The final score came out to 23-25, 25-18, 25-21.

Avery Buckley

Assists

09/25/25 @ Mater Dei	32
09/18/25 vs Villa Duchesne	15
09/16/25 @ Visitation Academy	32
09/13/25 vs Blue Springs	23
09/13/25 @ Mascoutah	29
09/13/25 @ St. Teresa's Academy	22

Incarnate Word Academy's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Avery Buckley, who had 32 assists and eight digs, and Kendall Stroer, who had 12 digs. Buckley has been hot, having posted 15 or more assists the last six times she's played.

Ava Lampe had a dynamite game For Mater Dei., getting 15 digs and two aces. That's the most digs Lampe has posted over her last nine matchups.

Incarnate Word Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 8-6. As for Mater Dei, the victory was the fourth in a row for them, bringing their record up to 14-4.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Incarnate Word Academy will face off against St. Joseph's Academy at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. As for Mater Dei, they will take on Breese Central at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.