CLINTON, S.C. - A career-high 21 kills from Caroline Cann (Landrum, S.C.) helped lift the Presbyterian College volleyball team to a 3-1 victory (25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 26-24) over UNC Asheville on Saturday in PC's final home match of the year.
The Blue Hose win their fifth straight and fourth in Big South Conference play to improve to 13-16 on the year and 7-6 in league matches. UNC Asheville slips to 14-11 overall and 7-5 in conference action.
Prior to the game, Presley Mabrey (Lyman, S.C.) was honored for her 1,000th career kill.
Cann's 21 kills mark the highest single-match total for the sophomore and tie for the sixth-most over the last four years for PC. Cann also led PC defensively with 21 digs.
Four players hit double-digits in kills for the Blue Hose. Mabrey chipped in 15, Kelly Berryman (Normal, Ill.) added 12 and Allison Brown (Plano, Texas) contributed 10. Mabrey also racked up 20 digs and Mary Trimpe (Normal, Ill.) added 19 as well. Ashtin Frank (Bloomington, Ill.) also ended the day with 56 assists.
Rachel Hall (Roswell, Ga.) posted nine kills and led all players with seven block assists and a block solo.
Cindi Miller led UNC Ashevillle with 14 kills.
The two sides battled through a tight first set that saw 16 tie scores and six lead changes. PC broke away from the Bulldogs early to take a 10-7 lead, but UNC Asheville pulled even again and took a two-point lead at 19-17.
A Cann kill and a bad Bulldog set tied the frame again at 19-19, setting up several more even scores before a 23-23 deadlock. With UNC Asheville serving, Hall provided a kill to put the Blue Hose in the driver's seat and a Cann kill sealed the first set for PC, 25-23.
PC opened a 10-1 lead in set number two before UNC Asheville went on a run to force a 13-13 tie. The Bulldogs took the lead on an Alex Stewart ace and never let the Blue Hose pull even, despite PC clawing to within one several times late, including 22-21. A Holly Shelton kill and two PC errors gave the set to the Bulldogs as the match stood tied, 1-1.
The third set opened with a back-and-forth battle for the lead before a Cann and Hall block gave PC an 11-10 advantage the squad would not relinquish. A 10-6 run helped PC to a five-point lead and prompted a Bulldog timeout. The Blue Hose kept up their momentum after the stoppage by using a UNC Asheville error and a Brown kill to go ahead, 22-16. Kills from Cann and Brown sandwiched around an error then lifted PC to a set three victory, 25-18.
The fourth and final set provided a wild atmosphere, with two distinct swings and PC surviving a late rally from UNC Asheville. An opening 6-1 score from UNC Ashveille turned into a tie set at 8-8 before an eventual 6-0 PC run boosted the Blue Hose lead to 18-10. The Bulldogs clawed back, however , tying the set at 20-20 and repeating the feat twice more to force a 24-24 standoff. With Cann serving, Mabrey gave PC the lead with a kill and Berryman followed with another to take the set, 26-24, and the match, 3-1.
The Blue Hose wrap up the season with their final match on Friday at Winthrop at 7 p.m.
