ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. Playing one final road game of the regular season, the Methodist women's volleyball team took down North Carolina Wesleyan in four sets on Wednesday.
During the match, libero
Blake O'Brien recorded 23 digs, pushing her season total to 579. She becomes the MU record holder for most digs in a single season, passing Karly Klimas, who had 577 in 2014.
JUST THE FACTS
Final scores: Methodist def. North Carolina Wesleyan, 3-1 (19-25, 25-16, 25-16, 25-17)
Records: Methodist 16-8 (11-6 USA South), North Carolina Wesleyan 7-22 (4-14)
Location: Everett Gymnasium; Rocky Mount, North Carolina
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Monarchs opened the first set with an impressive 5-0 run that included two service aces by Hannah Hewett. N.C. Wesleyan responded with a five-point run of its own, then the teams exchanged runs of three points each to even the score at 8-8. The score became tied on four more occasions, reaching 17-17 before the Battling Bishops took eight of the set's final ten points.
- With kills by Aniyah Tate, Savannah Hovander and Jeanana Fowler along with a service ace by Blake O'Brien, Methodist claimed a 4-2 advantage to begin the second set. The Monarch lead grew to 10-5 after two more kills from Fowler, a service ace by Jamie Holton and a handful of N.C. Wesleyan errors. With Methodist ahead 16-13, the Monarchs ripped off six-straight points to make it 22-13, and kills by Tate and Holton helped finish the set.
- Trailing 4-3 in the third, Methodist earned five-straight points – four of which were N.C. Wesleyan attack errors while the other was a Julia Mundy service ace. The Battling Bishops fought back to within one (10-9), but the Monarchs pieced together a six-point run (including two kills by Tate) to push ahead by seven. Up 22-16, Methodist notched three points in a row to claim another set victory.
- After conceding the first two points of the fourth set, Methodist won six of the next seven points, which included three kills by Holton. N.C. Wesleyan fought back, capturing leads of 10-9 and 11-10, but Methodist won eight out of ten points to reclaim an advantage (18-13). Up 23-17, the Monarchs earned the final two points with back-to-back kills by Tate.
MORE TO IT
- The Monarchs recorded 10 service aces, tying the most that the team has notched in a match this season.
- Recording the second-most kills for Methodist, Aniyah Tate set a single-game career-high with 15 kills during the match.
- With 10 kills, Jeanana Fowler boosts her streak of recording double-digit kills to nine games. With 16, Jamie Holton improves her double-digit kill streak to eight games.
UP NEXT
Methodist returns home for the final regular season contest, which will also serve as senior day. The Monarchs are set to host Southern Virginia on Saturday at noon.
