HIGH POINT, N.C.
- The Presbyterian
College volleyball team won the first set against High Point and was just a
point away from taking a 2-0 lead heading into intermission, but the Panthers
were able to rally and take the second, third and fourth sets for a 3-1 win.
Set scores were 25-22, 24-26, 18-25, 19-25.
The Blue Hose fall to 9-11 overall and 2-4 in Big South play.
Leading the way for PC was Amanda Kettles, who posted 16 kills and hit .419 for
the day. She also became the first PC student-athlete to record 1,000 kills since making the move to Division I. Lisa Shelley also reached double figures, notching 12 kills. Kilee
Ruppe dished out 42 assists while Ashley Dunlap led the way with 13 digs as did
Presley Mabrey. Elizabeth Heineman chipped in 12 in the loss.
Kettles, Allison Brown and Andrea Barman each had three blocks while Ruppe
added two.
In the first set, Kettles slammed home five kills on seven attempts for a .714
attack percentage, helping the Blue Hose gain a 1-0 set advantage. Shelley
chipped in four of her kills in the set. Heineman helped the team as did Ruppe,
notching two and one aces, respectively.
PC jumped out to a 2-0 advantage thanks in part to back-to-back errors by the
home team. Allison Brown and Andrea Barman stuffed Audie Gonzalez for a 4-1
lead. Ahead 7-4, back-to-back kills by Shelley gave the Blue Hose a 9-4 margin.
However, the Panthers pawed their way back into the contest, taking a 12-10
lead only to see the resilient PC squad even the match at 14. After trading
points, Shelley's kill and an attack error gave the Blue Hose a 17-15 working
lead. Although the home squad pulled within one on three occasions, Mabrey's
smash and an attack error by HPU gave the Blue Hose a 25-22 win.
The home team was able to tie it up by winning the second set 27-25. The Blue
Hose were ahead 15-12 on a kill by Brown, but the Panthers were able to knot it
up at 15. HPU actually took a lead at 21-19, but Brown answered the bell with a
kill off a pass from Ruppe.
Trailing 23-21, Kettles and Shelley posted kills to even the contest. Then,
Shelley's kill put PC in the driver's seat momentarily, taking a 24-23 lead.
After a time-out, the Panthers evened the score. Kettles gave the Blue Hose a
25-24 advantage, but a kill by the home team and back-to-back errors gave the
Panthers the victory heading into intermission.
PC fell behind 2-1 after falling 25-18 in the third set. The Blue Hose started
the set off in fine fashion, taking a 4-2 lead thanks in part to Brown, who had
a kill and a block. The game was knotted at 8-8, but then the home team went on
a 9-3 run for a 17-11 advantage.
The Blue Hose pulled within three at 20-17 on a kill by Brown, but could get no
closer as the Panthers pulled away for the third-set win.
In set four, PC once again took an early lead, gaining a 7-3 advantage thanks
to back-to-back kills by Kettles. The Blue Hose held a 13-6 lead before the
Panthers starting clawing away at it. Through kills by HPU and errors by the
visitors, the Panthers went on an 11-0 run for a 17-13 lead they would not
relinquish.
PC sliced into the deficit to make it 17-15 on an attack error by HPU, but
could get no closer as the Panthers pulled away for the 25-19 win.
The Blue Hose return to action on Oct. 15 when they play host to Charleston
Southern in a 7 p.m. contest in the Templeton Center.
