Volleyball Falls to Furman in a Highly Contested Match
11/12/2011 3:48:00 AM | Volleyball
GREENVILLE, S.C. - The Georgia Southern Volleyball team (17-14, 9-6) fell 3-1 to Furman (19-8, 12-3) in a highly contested 25-21, 25-21, 12-25, 25-20 match which featured 37 ties and 16 lead changes before it was all said and done. The Eagles out hit the Paladins .207 to .178 but tallied only 47 kills to Furman's 58.
Bethany Sanford (Avondale, Ariz.) and Meredith Paskert (Brecksville, Ohio) both tallied double figure kills and accounted for nearly half of GSU's kills. Sanford led the team with 13, while Paskert added 12 kills.
Moriah Bellissimo (Blackstone, Va.) recorded a team-high 28 digs to help the Eagles hold Furman to a zero hitting percentage in the third set. Sanford added 12 digs along with Hayli Ketner (Spartanburg, S.C.) to go along with Kate Van Dyke's (Shawnee, Kan.) 15 digs.
Georgia Southern was held to below a .200 hitting percentage in the first two sets and fell 25-21 in both. The Eagles rallied back to stave off the three-set sweep, winning the set 25-12 behind a .343 hitting percentage. GSU could not muster a repeat performance of the third set and fell 25-20.
Kelly Kirby posted a triple-double with 16 kills, 22 assists and 16 digs to lead Furman in their 12th SoCon win. Natalie Braun added a second triple-double with 11 kills, 29 assists and 12 digs. The two players accounted for 27 kills, 51 assists and 28 digs.
The Georgia Southern Volleyball team returns to action tomorrow night when they face Wofford at nearby Converse College. The match starts at 6 p.m. and all football fans attending the Georgia Southern vs Wofford game are encouraged to attend.
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