HIGH POINT, N.C.?The Presbyterian College volleyball team battled against conference-leading High Point Friday night and pushed the Panthers to five sets before eventually losing the match 23-25, 25-21, 19-25, 25-21, 9-15. PC moves to 6-17 overall and 3-7 in conference action, while High Point is 9-0 in the Big South and has an overall record of 21-3.
Kelsey McKee (Greenville, S.C./Eastside) led a Blue Hose offense that had three players with double-digit kills. McKee recorded 19 kills and a .432 hitting percentage, while Lisa Shelley (Columbia, S.C./Blythewood) chipped in 16 kills and Amanda Kettles (Canton, Ga./Cherokee) had 10 kills. Elizabeth Heineman's (Normal, Ill./Normal West) match-high 24 digs anchored a PC defense that came up with 90 total digs in the five set match.
In the first set both teams traded points early, and eventually tied the score at 21-21. PC forced the score to 23-24 before High Point sided out to win the set. The Panthers jumped out to an early 11-4 lead in the second set before the Blue Hose went on a 9-2 run behind the serving of Carolyn Fabros (Huntley, Ill./Huntley) and Kettles to tie the score at 13. Neither team led by more than three points for the remainder of the match until the Blue Hose won the set 25-21 on a High Point attack error.
After the break, High Point came out strong and sided out for the first point of the third set and never gave up the lead en route to a 25-19 win. PC fought back in the third set, an affair that featured seven tie scores and five lead changes, and eventually took a 15-11 lead on a kill by McKee. High Point came within two points when they closed the gap to 18-16, but with help from kills by Shelley and McKee the Blue Hose stretched their lead to 21-17. A Heather Swain (Woodruff, S.C./Southside Christian) kill gave PC set point before a kill by Kettles won the set 25-21.
In the fifth and deciding set the score was tied at 4-4 before High Point opened up the scoring and pushed the score to 11-6. Despite a late push by the Blue Hose, the Panthers hung on for a 15-9 win to take the match.
High Point was led by Ashley Mellot's 23 kills and Kristina Taylor's 52 assists. With the win, the Panthers remain undefeated in Big South conference action.
The Blue Hose return home for a conference match against Winthrop on Oct. 31 at 7 p.m.
