SALEM, Va. — Averett University volleyball finished off its first regular season in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference with a five-set victory over Roanoke College on Tuesday night. The Cougars battled from behind in the fifth set to take down the Maroons and position itself well for next week's ODAC Tournament.
Averett (17-9, 10-2 ODAC) won Set 2 and Set 3 after dropping the opening set to Roanoke (12-12, 5-7 ODAC). However, the Maroons fought back to win Set 4 25-23 to force a deciding fifth set on their Senior Night.
The momentum of winning the fourth set carried over early into Set 5 for Roanoke, which raced out to a 6-1 advantage. It led Averett first-year head coach
Olivia Earls to call a timeout, and the Cougars responded after the break. Averett rattled off six consecutive points to overtake Roanoke 7-6. The two foes traded points, but the Cougars never fell behind. Up 11-10, Averett got a kill from senior
Jessica Beam and two kills by freshman
Rachel Green as Averett won the last four points to seal the victory and give Earls a win against her alma mater.
Although other ODAC teams have remaining matches through Saturday and an official bracket won't be set until that time, Averett's 10-2 conference record mathematically puts them in the top four in the standings. The top four seeds host ODAC quarterfinal matchups on Wednesday, Nov. 2.
The Cougars opened Tuesday's match at Roanoke by falling behind 23-15. Although Averett battled back to get within 23-20, the Maroons held on for a 25-22 win to go up 1-0 in the match. Averett responded with a strong start in Set 2 as the Cougars pulled out to an 18-8 lead on their way to a 25-20 win to even the score. Averett then eked out a 25-23 win in Set 2 to position itself for the victory. The Maroons didn't go quietly, however, as Roanoke erased a four-point deficit midway through the frame and jumped ahead late for a 25-23 win to force a fifth set.
Although Averett didn't hit at a high percentage, the Cougars found a way to win with the help of 12 kills apiece from Green, Beam and junior
Emma Nash. Green and Nash had double-doubles, as they finished with 14 digs and 13 digs, respectively. Junior
Erin Gray led Averett with 17 digs, and she and Green each had a team-best three service aces. Sophomore
Kinsley Stevens added 21 assists and 11 digs, with freshman
Dayton Moore totaling a team-high 23 assists. Senior
Morgan Barnes added nine kills and five total blocks.
Averett finishes its regular season slate with a tri-match at Christopher Newport University on Saturday when the Cougars take on York College at 1 p.m. and the host Captains at 3 p.m.
