Small's 14 Kills Lead Eagles Past Troy, 3-1
8/28/2010 7:21:00 PM | Volleyball
AUBURN, Ala. – Behind junior middle hitter Parker Small’s match-high 14 kills, Georgia Southern defeated Troy, 3-1 (25-15, 23-25, 25-19, 25-19), in the first game of day two at the War Eagle Invitational on the campus of Auburn University. The Eagles moved to 2-0 on the season.
Small finished the match with a .545 attack percentage with 14 kills on 22 attacks and two errors. The Charlotte, N.C., native also finished with two block solos and four block assists. Sophomore setter Kate Van Dyke (Shawnee, Kan.) led the match with 39 assists, while juniors Bethany Sanford (Avondale, Arizon.) and Ashley Roe (Campbell, Calif.) tied for a team-best 14 digs.
Troy (0-2) was led by Devin Von Pingel with 12 kills, setter Megan Henderson with 36 assists and Courtney Cohen with a match-high 15 digs.
The Eagles came out in set one quickly taking the lead, going up by five at the 9-4 mark in part from a kill by Small. The Trojans pulled to within three at 12-9 following Von Pingel’s third kill of the set, but a Sanford kill followed by two services aces from Van Dyke and a Trojan error pushed the Eagles in front, 16-9. At 20-13, the Eagles solidified set one using a 5-2 run highlighted by a couple aces from junior Roe.
Troy captured set two, 25-23, holding the Eagles to a .135 attack percentage and 11 kills. The two teams battled through 17 ties and eight lead changes with Sanford leading the Eagles with four kills. The Trojans jumped out with a 4-1 lead, but the Eagles drew the set back to even as the two teams tossed the lead back-and-forth through a 21-21 tie with neither team leading by more than two points at a time. GS took a 23-21 advantage using two Trojan errors, but Troy knotted the score again at 23-all. Two attack errors from the Eagles followed, sealing the Troy win, 25-23.
The Eagles regrouped and immediately pulled out with the lead in set three. Troy kept close and tied the score back at 9-9 off a kill from Kayla Giles. After two ties, Troy took a two-point lead, 14-12, but the Eagles immediately reversed the lead and pulled away with a 20-15 advantage using an 8-1 run. GS went on and took set three 25-19.
Small led the Eagles in their best offensive set with five kills as GS tallied a .379 attack percentage on only one error. Troy was limited to a .083 attack percentage committing seven errors in the third set.
Georgia Southern opened the fourth set taking a 10-4 lead. The Trojans closed to within three at 12-9, but that would be the closest they would get as the Eagles held strong and finished out the set to win 25-19.
The War Eagle Invitational wraps up this evening with the Eagles battling host Auburn at 8 p.m. (ET). Fans can follow the match via live stats at the tournament’s official page by accessing AuburnTigers.cstv.com or by clicking here.
