Liberty University
4-4
Appalachian State
5-4
Appalachian State Edges Liberty, 3-2
9/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Liberty took a 1-0 lead on Saturday at Appalachian State, before the Mountaineers rallied to win the five-set match, 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-13, 21-25, 15-10) at Holmes Convocation Center.
The host Mountaineers improve to 5-4 on the season with its first five-set victory of the season. Liberty falls to 4-4 and 0-2 at this weekend's Appalachian Invitational heading into a 4 p.m. match against Missouri. The Lady Flames' last five set match was Oct. 11, 2014, a 3-2 win over High Point.
For the match, Liberty outhit App State, .270-.266 and doubled the Mountaineers' block total, 8-4. Appalachian State led, 79-71 in digs and 4-3 in service aces. Liberty committed 14 service errors, compared to six for the Mountaineers.
Jess Keller scored a match-high for App State, while Emily Corrigan followed with 22 kills and 17 digs. Ashton Gregory tallied nine kills, while Paige Brown registered 54 assists and 20 digs. Olivia Reed served up three aces, while Meghan Mahoney collected 21 digs.
Caroline Douglas paced Liberty with 19 kills. Douglas passed Jessica Nelson (2004-08) into 13th place all-time at Liberty, with 1,107 career kills. Margaret Latchford collected a season-high 29 digs, the most digs by a Lady Flame since Gabrielle Shipe's 29-dig effort againsts UNCG, Sept. 6, 2014. Jade Vorster recorded 12 kills and four blocks, while Sirena Vorster totaled eight kills and five blocks. Anna Willey contributed eight kills, 45 assists and eight digs, while Susan Babcock served up three aces.
Liberty jumped out to an 18-12 lead during set one, getting five early kills from Douglas. ASU battled back, tying it at 20-20 with an 8-2 run, capped by a Corrigan kill. A Jade Vorster kill and a Mountaineer error made it 22-20, Liberty. The Lady Flames held serve to the end, winning, 25-23.
Douglas led the Lady Flames with five kills during the opening session, followed by four each from Willey and Jade Vorster. Liberty outhit Appalachians State, .222-.143.
In the second set, Babcock gave Liberty an 18-15 lead following back-to-back aces. The Mountaineers then staged a 6-1 rally, taking the lead on consecutive Corrigan kills. Liberty rallied to tie it at 22-all with a combo block. Keller gave ASU set point, 24-22, and the hosts cashed in on their second clinching chance, winning 25-23.
Appalachian State outhit Liberty, .222-.135, during the second set. Keller scored seven kills for ASU, while Liberty's Douglas had six kills and Babcock served up three aces.
The Mountaineers used a pair of 5-0 rallies during set three to gain separation, on the way to a 25-13 win. Appalachian State hit .357 in the third session, compared to .107 for the Lady Flames. Corrigan and Keller both sent down four kills for ASU.
Liberty pulled away late in the fourth set for a 25-21 victory to send the match to a fifth set. A Willey kill made it 20-15 Liberty, before the Mountaineers pulled to within 20-19. Douglas then sparked a 5-2 run for the Lady Flames.
During set four, Liberty outhit App State, .514-.250. Douglas scored five kills, while Keller answered with seven kills.
Appalachian State stormed to a 9-2 lead to open the fifth set. Liberty rallied to within five on five occasions, but the Mountaineers closed out the match, 15-10.
Both teams hit well during the final frame, with App State outhitting Liberty, .550-.444.
The Lady Flames wrap up their time in Boone, N.C., later this afternoon, taking on Missouri at 4 p.m.
