ROANOKE, Va. In dominant fashion, the Methodist women's volleyball team defeated both its opponents on Friday, taking down Ferrum College in straight sets before overcoming a first–set loss to beat Randolph College.
Entering the day with 982 kills in her collegiate career,
Jeanana Fowler reached the 1,000–kills milestone by notching 14 kills versus Ferrum and 16 against Randolph.
Final scores: Methodist def. Ferrum, 3–0 (25–10, 25–10, 25–17); Methodist def. Randolph, 3–1 (27–29, 25–21, 25–17, 25–20)
Records: Methodist 5–1, Ferrum 2–3, Randolph 2–2
Event: Maroon Classic
Host: Roanoke College
Location: Cregger Center; Roanoke, Virginia
GAME ONE
- The Monarchs sailed ahead to a 10–2 lead, with Savannah Hovander contributing an early two kills and two service aces. With a 13–7 lead, Methodist ripped off an eight–point run, with half of those points coming via kills by Fowler. A service ace by Jamie Holton clinched the first set.
- Back–and–forth went the two teams to start the second set, with Methodist managing just a 9–8 advantage. However, an 11–0 run in favor of the Monarchs (with four points won by Holton) made the score 20-8, which would allow Methodist to easily secure another set win.
- Ferrum applied some pressure to begin the third set as the Panthers captured a 5–1 lead, but a six-point swing for Methodist (with two Hovander aces) put the Monarchs right back on top. 11 of the next 15 points went Methodist's way, lifting the team to an 18–9 advantage. The two squads went point–for–point the rest of the way, allowing Methodist to amass 25 points first and complete the sweep.
GAME TWO
- The Wildcats appeared evenly matched with the Monarchs to start the first set. Four kills away from 1,000, Fowler notched the four she needed within Methodist's first nine points. The Monarchs clawed their way to a 13–12 advantage before a five–point run put them up 18-12. That comfortable lead quickly evaporated as Randolph rattled off six straight points to tie the score. Methodist again pulled ahead, reaching match point with a 24–21 lead, but the Wildcats overcame the odds and outscored the Monarchs 8–3 over the final nine points in order to win the set.
- Randolph captured a lead first in the second set, but in hot pursuit, Methodist quickly caught up and took a 9–8 lead after three kills by Holton in a span of four points. With the score tied at 14, another kill by Holton sparked a five–point run, giving Methodist a 19–14 lead which pushed the team to a set win and tied the match at 1–1.
- The Monarchs recorded 19 kills in the third set — their most in a single set during either match on Friday. The teams exchanged three–point runs the begin the set, then neither squad possessed a lead of more than one point until another three–point streak put Methodist ahead 10–7. The Monarchs did not concede the lead the rest of the way, pulling ahead, two sets to one.
- It was all Methodist to start the fourth set, as the Monarchs earned the first five points while Hannah Hewett delivered each serve. Once again, Methodist did not relinquish the lead. Holton delivered the final three kills the Monarchs needed to take the match.
MORE TO IT
- Methodist truly outshined the Wildcats in every statistical category. The Monarchs held Ferrum to a hitting percentage of –.011 for the match, allowing an average of less than six kills per set.
- Hannah Hewett earned a double–double in the win over Randolph, recording 54 assists and 19 digs. She finished one dig shy of a double–double versus Ferrum (38 assists and nine digs).
- Jamie Holton logged 20 kills against Randolph, becoming the first Monarch this season to achieve 20 kills in a match.
UP NEXT
The Monarchs are back in action at the Maroon Classic on Saturday, competing at 10 a.m. against Hollins University and again at 12 p.m. versus the event host, Roanoke College.
