DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University volleyball ended the regular season with a pair of conference wins Saturday. The Cougars held off N.C. Wesleyan College 3-2, then beat Meredith College 3-1 as part of a conference tri-match hosted at the Grant Center.
In the opener against N.C. Wesleyan, Averett (23,-7, 13-5 USA South needed five sets to put away the Battling Bishops. With the match tied 1-1, the Cougars dominated the third frame 25-14. However, a slow start in Set 4 allowed N.C. Wesleyan (18-13, 9-9 USA South) to gain a 14-6 advantage. Averett rallied back to tie it, 19-19, but couldn't finish off the comeback as the Bishops held on 25-22 to force a deciding fifth set.
In the fifth, Averett opened with a 5-3 lead before N.C. Wesleyan inched ahead 9-7. The Cougars then rattled off eight of the next nine points to earn the conference win and solidify the No. 4 seed in the East Division for next week's USA South Conference Tournament.
Four Cougars had double-digit kill efforts against N.C. Wesleyan, with sophomore
Emma Nash leading the way. She had 12 kills to go along with seven total blocks. Senior
Sarah Shropshire and junior Lauren Monren each had 11 kills — with Montren tallying a double-double with 20 digs as well. Junior
Morgan Barnes added 10 kills and three blocks. Sophomore
Erin Gray also had team-highs of 23 digs and three service aces, and freshman
Kinsley Stevens led the setters with 32 assists. Sophomore
Makkenzie Compton also had a double-double of 17 assists and 10 digs.
Averett continued that momentum into its final match of the day against rival Meredith (21-7, 15-3). The Avenging Angels entered the contest riding an 11-match win streak. Averett, however, jumped on Meredith and dominated the first two sets, winning 25-14 and 25-15. Although Meredith rebounded with a 25-19 win in Set 3, Averett finished off the Avenging Angels 25-20 in Set 4 to prevent Meredith from earning a share of the USA South East Division regular season title.
Shropshire turned a solid performance with a team-high 18 kills while swinging .340 for the match. Barnes also had 10 kills and two blocks, with Nash and senior
Zamyiah Mangum finishing with eight kills apiece. Nash also had three blocks. Gray duplicated her performance from the first match with 23 digs and added five service aces. Stevens recorded a double-double of 25 assists and 11 digs. Montren chipped in 13 digs for the Cougars in the win.
In between Averett's matches, Meredith swept N.C. Wesleyan 3-0 to eliminate the Battling Bishops from postseason contention.
As the No. 4 seed in the East Division, Averett will face No. 5 seed Pfeiffer University on Tuesday in the USA South's First Round game hosted at Southern Virginia University. The winner will advance to immediately play the Knight, who are the East's No. 1 seed.
