Sarah Robertson record a career-high 22 kills and her service run in the fifth set saved two match points, but it wasn't enough as Mount Olive fell to Millersville 25-20, 24-26, 23-25, 25-14, 16-14 in the championship match of the 2012 Mount Olive College Women's Volleyball Invitational Saturday at Kornegay Arena. Both teams entered the final match with 3-0 records in the tournament, making the contest a winner-takes-all-match.
Earlier in the day, Carly White led all players with 12 kills and Dezirae Mackey keyed a late scoring run in the second set as Trojans defeated Saint Augustine's 25-11, 25-19, 25-13. Mount Olive served 11 aces, including an ace on set point in all three sets.
Mackey and setter Nicole Karas represented Mount Olive on the All-Tournament Team. Millersville setter Jessica Franz was named Most Valuable Player.
Mount Olive (4-4) dropped the first set against Millersville and was one point away from being down two sets. Mackey's kill tied the set 24-24 and a pair of Marauder attack errors allowed the Trojans to even the match at a set apiece.
The Trojans trailed 19-17 in the third set before kills by Mackey and Robertson tied the set up. Mount Olive was down 21-20 when Robertson combined with White on a block and then put the Trojans ahead to stay with a kill. Ashlee Reuter followed with a solo block and after Millersville fought off one set point, White's kill put Mount Olive within a set of winning the match and the tournament title.
Mount Olive jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the fourth set before Millersville (5-3) used a pair of aces by Sue Caramanico and three kills by Katie Lesinski during a run of eight unanswered points to go ahead to stay. The Marauders broke the game open during Lesinski's seven-point service run as three consecutive kills by Katelyn Ort gave Millersville a 22-10 lead. The margin remained in double digits and Ort's kill on set point forced a fifth set. Five of Ort's10 kills took place during Millersville's last six points of the set.
After scoring the first two points of the fifth set, Mount Olive found itself playing from behind as the Trojans trailed 8-5. A pair of Millersville attack errors sandwiched around a Robertson kill tied the set 8-8, but Millersville answered with kills by Franz and Lesinski.
Mount Olive got as close as one, but Kayla Wallace's ace gave Millersville a 14-11 lead and three match points. The Trojans saved the first match point on a service error and Robertson served for Mount Olive after a Marauder timeout. Reuter recorded a kill to save another match point and force another Millersville timeout. Lee's kill saved another match point and tied the set 14-14.
Millersville went back on top and had its fourth match point after a ball handling error was called against Mount Olive. Franz sealed the win and the title with her second ace of the match.
White finished with 15 kills, while Lee added 12 kills. Karas recorded a career-high 54 assists to go with a team-high three aces. Nicole Sparks paced the Trojan defense with a career-high 27 digs. White had four blocks and Robertson added three blocks as the Trojans recorded 10.0 blocks as a team. Robertson also had 13 digs.
Lesinski led Millersville with 14 kills, while added 12 kills and four aces. Caramanico had seven of the Marauders' 17 aces. Franz, who split time at setter in the first two sets, finished with 36 assists. Libero Brooklyn Smith, who was also named to the All-Tournament Team, recorded 18 digs and three aces.
In the Trojans' match against Saint Augustine's, Mackey and Lee each had a block and a kill during a 12-4 in the first set as Mount Olive turned a two-point lead into a double-digit advantage at 20-10. Robertson had two of her match-high four aces during a set-ending 5-0 run to give the Trojans the first set.
Saint Augustine's led 18-16 in the second set after kills by Na'Chanelle Brown and Jamie Goff. After Robertson's kill gave Mount Olive a side out, Mackey put the Trojans ahead to stay with a six-point service run, including an ace to break an 18-18 tie. White had a kill and a block during the run and Karas' ace gave Mount Olive a two-set lead.
The Trojans never trailed in the third set and Lee's kill ignited a 9-2 run as the Trojans broke away from an 8-7 lead. Charnel Austin served an ace on match point to seal Mount Olive's third consecutive win.
Mackey finished with eight kills and three aces for the Trojans. White had a match-high four blocks, while Lee added 11 digs. Karas, who sat out much of the third set, recorded 25 assists and two aces.
Victoria Davis led the Falcons with five kills and two blocks.
In Saturday's other matches, UNC Pembroke picked up a pair of victories, defeating Saint Augustine's 25-19, 25-8, 25-7 and posting a 25-14, 25-10, 25-27, 25-12 victory over Virginia State. Millersville began Saturday with a 25-17, 25-8, 25-14 win over Virginia State.
Jasmine Davis of Virginia State, Brittany Hicks of Saint Augustine's and Ashlyn Rebok of UNC Pembroke were also named to the All-Tournament Team.
Mount Olive is off until next weekend when the Trojans travel to Upstate South Carolina to open Conference Carolinas play. Mount Olive goes to Converse Friday at 7 p.m., then heads to Erskine Saturday for a 2 p.m. match-up.
Tournament Champion: Millersville
Most Valuable Player: Jessica Franz, Millersville
All Tournament Team
Jasmine Davis, Virginia State
Jessica Franz, Millersville
Brittany Hicks, Saint Augustine's
Nicole Karas, Mount Olive
Dezirae Mackey, Mount Olive
Ashlyn Rebok, UNC Pembroke
Brooklyn Smith, Millersville
