MOUNT OLIVE (Oct. 12) – The Trojans earned a sixth consecutive victory behind three players with double-digit kills in a 3-1 win over Lees-McRae in Conference Carolinas play at Kornegay Arena on Saturday.
With the win, the University of Mount Olive women's volleyball team improves to 11-6 overall with an 8-2 record in conference action. The Trojans have secured five straight victories over the Bobcats in the series and continue to hold the top spot in the east division. Meanwhile, Lees-McRae drops to 9-4 this season behind a 1-2 mark in league play.
Senior
Ashlyn Stone recorded a team-high 16 kills on a .350 hitting percentage while adding 10 digs, two aces, and three blocks. Sophomore
Kaitlyn Landis contributed 12 kills on a .444 clip while senior
Kate Carter finished with 10 kills, one ace, six blocks, and three digs. Fellow seniors
Karoline Cox and
Callie Mullins registered nine and eight kills, respectively. Junior
Breanna Tanton guided the offense with 36 assists and 12 digs while sophomore
Lyndsay Reid totaled 14 assists, two aces, and four digs.
Freshman
Kacey Gore directed the defensive effort with 19 digs and seven assists.
Mount Olive quickly built a 10-4 advantage in the first set after capitalizing on six attacking errors by the Bobcats. Lees-McRae closed the gap to 13-11 before the Trojans scored eight of the following 11 points to take a significant 21-14 lead. The Bobcats managed to cut the deficit to 22-17, but UMO sealed the set with three unanswered points, 25-17.
The sides traded points to begin the second set, as Lees-McRae held a marginal 10-9 edge. Mount Olive responded with a 6-1 run with two kills and an ace by Carter to hold a 15-11 advantage. The Bobcats trimmed the deficit to 17-14, but UMO tallied five of the next six points to build a 22-15 lead. The Trojans ultimately claimed the set by a 25-20 margin on a kill from Mullins.
Mount Olive established a 12-10 edge in the third set before Lees-McRae rallied with a 12-4 run to take a 22-16 advantage. UMO battled back to close the gap to 24-22 after a pair of kills from Stone. The Bobcats kept the match alive with a kill on the next point to win, 25-22.
In a highly competitive fourth set, a total of 19 ties and eight lead changes occurred with 41 combined kills recorded. The Trojans managed to take a 10-7 edge, but Lees-McRae countered with an 8-2 rally to claim a 15-12 lead. With the contest eventually tied at 16-16, the Bobcats pushed ahead by a 22-20 margin before UMO scored four of the following five to reach match point. Six ties and four lead changes would occur down the stretch before back-to-back blocks at the net secured the 31-29 win for Mount Olive.
The Trojans will be idle for a week before hosting Southern Wesleyan on Saturday, Oct. 19, at Kornegay Arena, starting at 2 p.m.
