Volleyball Drops Close Decision to Southern Mississippi
Sanford (Avondale, Ariz.) led the Eagles with 19 kills, posting her second double-double of the season with 12 digs. The junior added three block assists and a service ace, while sophomore Moriah Bellissimo (Blackstone, Va.) added 13 kills and 10 digs. Junior transfer Ashley Roe (Campbell, Calif.) tied Sanford for the team-high with 12 digs as sophomore setter Kate Van Dyke (Shawnee, Kan.) posted a match-high 51 assists. Freshman Enjoli Johnson (Lilburn, Ga.), making her first appearance as an Eagle, posted six block assists and a solo block.
For the Golden Eagles, Ashley Mell led with a match-high 24 kills, while Lisa Knecht recorded 20 digs. Kelsea Seymour posted 48 assists.
After dropping the first set, 25-13, the Eagles evened the match grabbing the second, 25-22. Southern Mississippi took a 3-0 lead out of the gate, but Georgia Southern brought the match back to within one point twice before the Golden Eagles took a three-point advantage at 6-3. The teams traded the lead through a 12-12 tie before USM pulled away with a 17-13 advantage using a quartet of kills. The Eagles reciprocated with a 6-2 run of their own to knot the score at 19-19. Two service aces and a kill from the Golden Eagles put USM back in front, 22-19, before the Eagles surged ahead and closed out the set win on a 6-1 run. Sanford posted three kills in the run which was ignited by a Parker Small (Charlotte, N.C.) kill.
Georgia Southern took its final lead in the third set following a 2-2 tie. USM kept the match close, trailing by one at 14-13 moments before the Eagles pulled away, leading 17-14. A service error from the Golden Eagles jumpstarted a 7-1 Eagle run as Georgia Southern took a 23-15 lead. USM posted three unanswered, but Johnson and Hannah Nelson (Norcross, Ga.) closed out the set for the Eagles, 25-19.
The Eagles took a 3-1 lead to open set four, but the Golden Eagles tied the set six times before taking a two-point lead, 12-10. Georgia Southern knotted the score three times, regaining the lead at 18-15. Tied at 19-apiece, a Mell kill returned the advantage to the Golden Eagles who finished out the set, 25-22, to force a deciding fifth set.
Small started the fifth set with a kill, but USM responded with four unanswered for a 4-1 lead. Sanford drew the set back to a one-point contest, 5-4, and a ball handling error by Lauren Sears tied the set at 6-all. The Eagles held strong after a 3-2 USM run set the score at 9-8, pulling the match back to one point at 11-10. But the Golden Eagles sealed the match win, 15-11.
Georgia Southern continues tournament action on Saturday facing two Atlantic Coast Conference foes for the first time. The Eagles face off against Duke at 4 p.m. and wrap up the tournament with an 8 p.m. matchup against Miami. Fans can follow the action via live stats by clicking here and can listen to the matches live by clicking here.
- Category: Volleyball
- Published on Friday, 03 September 2010 20:00
