BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – The Presbyterian College Blue Hose (6-15, 2-6) swept the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs (3-17, 1-5) on Friday night 3-0 (27-25, 25-22, 25-13) behind a career-high of 18 kills from Ashley Miller.
 
COACH BENSON'S THOUGHTS
"Good win for us tonight. After some tough losses and dealing with many injuries we were able to find a rhythm in our match tonight. We led in kills overall in the match. We then improved in other areas scoring points to have a good strong overall match."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST SET
The game kicked off with both teams battling to a 3-3 tie, with early kills from Courtney Williams, Elyse Hutchinson, and Julia Yurkovich. PC then took three of the next four points, led by a pair of kills from Miller. After a brief exchange of points, the Runnin' Bulldogs went on a three-point run to take a 9-8 lead.
 
Presbyterian answered with two kills from Williams and one each from Yurkovich and Miller, reclaiming the lead. Another back-and-forth stretch brought the score to 15-14 in favor of PC. A kill from Hutchinson extended PC's advantage to two points, but Gardner-Webb responded with three consecutive points, shifting the lead back in their favor.
 
With the teams trading points, the score reached 20-20. Kills from Brittney Daphnis, Williams, and Hutchinson over the next few points gave PC a 23-21 edge, forcing a timeout from Gardner-Webb. Coming out of the break, the Runnin' Bulldogs cut their deficit to 24-23, but Presbyterian called set point.
 
Gardner-Webb managed to tie it up at 24-24, but Miller's kill put PC back in front. The Bulldogs evened the score again at 25-25, but Miller delivered back-to-back kills to clinch the set for the Blue Hose, 27-25.
 
SECOND SET
Building on their momentum from the first set, the Blue Hose opened the second set with three straight points, highlighted by a kill from Yurkovich. Despite a kill from Williams, Gardner-Webb quickly tied the score at 4-4. Williams responded, leading PC on a three-point run with a kill and a block alongside Hutchinson, giving them a 7-4 advantage.
 
An exchange of points followed, featuring kills from Miller and Hutchinson and a well-placed service ace from Courtney Aulbaugh. The Blue Hose then extended their lead to 14-9, thanks to a block by Hutchinson and Anna Baranski, kills from Miller and Daphnis, and an ace from Baranski. However, Gardner-Webb rallied with five consecutive points to level the score at 14-14, until Williams stopped their momentum with a kill.
 
Though Miller added another kill, the Runnin' Bulldogs surged ahead with a 5-2 run, claiming a 19-16 lead. PC answered back with three points of their own, including Aulbaugh's second ace of the night, tying the score at 19-19. Late in the set, Gardner-Webb edged PC 3-2, despite a kill from Baranski.
 
Undeterred, the Blue Hose closed out the set on a five-point run, winning 25-22 with kills from Miller, Williams, Daphnis, and a final kill from Williams.
 
THIRD SET
The third set opened with back-and-forth action, resulting in a 6-6 tie. PC's points came from two kills by Yurkovich, one from Williams, and blocks by Daphnis, Baranski, and Miller. The Blue Hose then surged ahead on a dominant seven-point run, taking a 13-6 lead with three kills from Miller, one each from Daphnis and Williams, and a block assist by Williams and Daphnis.
 
Although Williams added another kill, Gardner-Webb fought back, scoring four of the next five points to narrow the gap to 14-10. PC responded with five unanswered points, extending their lead to 19-10 with kills from Williams, Miller, and Hutchinson, plus a well-placed ace by Celimar Hoyos. With the score at 20-12, the Blue Hose grabbed three more points, highlighted by two more kills from Miller. Despite a late kill by the Runnin' Bulldogs, PC closed the set at 25-13, securing the sweep.
 
NOTABLES
- The Blue Hose dominated in kills (49-33) and digs (65-54) while out-hitting their opponents with a .350 to .143 percentage.
- Miller set a new career high with 18 kills, hitting at an impressive .267 rate.
- Baranski tallied 35 assists and 21 digs, earning her 15th double-double of the season.
- Williams added 14 kills with a stellar .448 hitting percentage and contributed four blocks.
- Hoyos finished with 21 digs, alongside seven assists and a service ace.
 
UP NEXT
The Blue Hose continue the weekend with another road match, this time against the Winthrop Eagles in Rock Hill, S.C. with a first serve at 2:00 p.m.