Liberty University
4-6
Chattanooga
9-2
Lady Flames Drop 3-0 Decision to Chattanooga
9/18/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Chattanooga rallied for a 25-23 set-three win, sweeping Liberty, 3-0 (25-23, 25-16, 25-23) during match one of the Hokie invitational, Friday at Virginia Tech's Cassell Coliseum.
The Mocs improve to 9-2 on the season, running their winning streak to five matches. The Lady Flames fall to 4-6 following their fourth straight setback.
Chattanooga outhit Liberty, .287-.142 for the match. The Mocs led, 52-37 in digs, while the Lady Flames held a 7-6 edge in blocks and 5-1 advantage in aces.
Allie Davenport sent down 12 kills for UTC, while Lauren Gainer totaled 10 kills and four blocks. Briana Reid contributed nine kills and 10 digs, while Lauren Greenspoon dished out a match-high 40 assists. Catherine Chason collected 11 digs, while Rachel Petkosh had 10 digs.
Three Lady Flames recorded seven kills each, in Susan Babcock, Gabrielle Vess and Sydney Morris. Babcock added a match-high four blocks. Anna Willey contributed 22 assists in addition to three blocks. Margaret Latchford collected 10 digs and served up two aces.
Liberty led set one, 17-15, following a Michelle Melendez ace. Davenport scored three kills during a 4-0 rally, as Chattanooga took the lead, 19-17. A Sirena Vorster kill later pulled Liberty to within one, 20-21 before the Mocs earned set point, 24-22, with a kill from Sarah Batterton. UTC cashed in on its second set point, winning 25-23.
Chattanooga held a .214-.163 edge in hitting during the opening set. Reid and Batterton scored four kills each for the Mocs, while Babcock scored four kills for Liberty.
The Mocs jumped out to a 16-6 lead during the second session and maintained their advantage throughout the set, winning 25-16. UTC outhit Liberty, .289-.044 during the stanza. Gainer and Davenport scored four kills each for the Mocs, while Willey assisted on three out of Liberty' four blocks during set two.
The Lady Flames led throughout a majority of the final frame. Hannah Weidner gave Liberty a 15-9 lead with a kill, and the white-clad Lady Flames led, 19-14, after Morris' fourth kill of the set. Back-to-back Batterton kills capped a 5-1 UTC run, as Chattanooga trimmed the deficit to 20-19. Liberty led, 22-20, after a Vess kill, but the Mocs raced to the finish, outscoring Liberty, 5-1 down the stretch to earn the sweep, 25-23, in set three.
Davenport scored five kills during set three, as Chattanooga outhit Liberty, .393-.250.
Liberty will play two matches tomorrow at the Hokie Invitational. The Lady Flames are scheduled to face Middle Tennessee at 12:30 p.m., before closing out the weekend's event with a 7 p.m. match against the host Virginia Tech Hokies.
