NEED TO KNOW
Score: William Carey 3, Life U 2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-17, 16-14)
Record: Life U 11-4 (1-2), William Carey 12-5 (3-1)
HATTIESBURG, Miss. — The Life University women's volleyball team dropped a hard-fought five-set match to William Carey on Friday night, falling 3-2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-17, 16-14) in SSAC action.
The Running Eagles opened the night by taking the first two sets and appeared poised for a road sweep before William Carey rallied to win the final three frames and escape with the conference victory.
Life used a dominant middle stretch in the opening set to build momentum. After the score was tied at 6-6, the Running Eagles rattled off a 10-2 run to take a commanding 16-8 advantage. William Carey trimmed the deficit and eventually tied the set at 23-23, but a kill and service ace from Medney Garraux closed out a 25-23 first-set win.
The Running Eagles carried that momentum into set two, building an early 6-2 lead. William Carey responded with an 8-1 run to claim a 14-10 advantage, but Life answered with an 8-1 surge of its own. A service ace from Sienna Pierre and another ace from Vitoria Reis highlighted the rally as the Running Eagles regained control before closing out the frame 25-22 for a 2-0 match lead.
William Carey battled back in the third set, using a late 10-5 stretch to turn a 15-15 tie into a 25-20 victory. The Crusaders continued to build momentum in the fourth, racing out to an 11-3 lead. Life attempted to rally behind kills from Kya Colston, Medney Garraux and Mia Goldbach, but William Carey maintained control and forced a decisive fifth set with a 25-17 win.
The final set featured nine ties and three lead changes. Life used a 5-0 run to turn a 5-5 tie into a 10-5 advantage, but William Carey answered with a 5-0 run of its own to even the score at 10-10. The Running Eagles then earned match point at 14-13 following a kill from Kya Colston, but the Crusaders scored the final three points to claim the set 16-14 and complete the comeback.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Life finished with 57 kills, 53 assists, 76 digs, nine service aces and five total blocks while hitting .150 as a team. William Carey recorded 59 kills, 78 digs and eight total blocks while hitting .198.
STANDOUT PERFORMANCES
- Medney Garraux: 20 kills, 15 digs, 3 service aces, double-double
- Paola Vega: 11 kills, .259 hitting percentage, 2 block assists
- Kya Colston: 9 kills, .391 hitting percentage, 3 total blocks
- Vitoria Reis: 22 assists, 15 digs, 2 service aces
- Emily Warner: 24 assists, 8 digs, 1 service ace
The Running Eagles return to SSAC play tomorrow facing Mobile.
