CLEVELAND, Ga. (October 30, 2021) – On Saturday, the Truett McConnell University women's volleyball team faced Appalachian Athletic Conference competitor, Union College, and Toccoa Falls College, inside the TMU Volleyball/Wrestling Arena, where the Lady Bears fell to Bulldogs with a match score of 0-3, but bounced back with a 3-0 victory over the Screaming Eagles. TMU is now sitting at a season record of 12-20, 7-12 AAC.
 
MATCH 1 | UC 3-TMU 0
Both teams were firing on all cylinders from the start, forcing the score to remain even for almost all of the first set. The Bulldogs broke away with a four-point lead, forcing TMU to work hard from behind (17-21). The lady bears quickly responded with a three-point run of their own to lessen the lead, but a Union kill ultimately clinched the win by slim margins (23-25). Set two saw TMU with an early two-point lead, but the Bulldogs did not hesitate to respond with points of their own. Multiple strong runs, forced TMU to work under pressure, unfortunately resulting in a second set win for Union (17-25). In set three, the Lady Bears showed their grit, combatting ever Union point with a point of their own. TMU took advantage of Bulldog errors lessening the lead to one (20-12), but a strong four-point Bulldog rally in the final points of the set secured the win with a score of 20-25.
 
LEADERS
Ranavia Neal led the way with 10 kills, while Jordan Roberts recorded nine kills. Sonya Silecky had six kills, 10 digs and 13 assists, followed by Virginia Hudson who had four kills, Bethany Ross who had two kills, Elizabeth Franklin who had two kills and Katie Williamson who had a single kill. Deomi Valmus tallied three aces, along with seven digs, while Morgan Cox had 12 assists. Rachel Kessler totaled 16 digs.
 
MATCH 2 | TMU 3-TFC 0
Match two saw the Lady Bears bounce back aggressively, as they did not hesitate in stealing an early lead of 7-2. TMU reached an 11-point lead after a Kessler ace, and increased to as most a 14-point lead for the final point of the set, featuring a Franklin kill to make the score 25-11. Set two saw the same momentum from the Lady Bears, along with an increase in speed from the Screaming Eagles. The lead was in reach other either team, until a big 10-point run (14-22), featuring kills from Silecky and Neal, put the game out of reach with a final score of 25-16. Set three saw the Lady Bears unstoppable, with a seven-point run of kills from Ross and Roberts (14-6), along with an eight-point run of kills from Neal, Franklin, Kiara Hughes and Abby Carlan (23-8). The Lady Bears ran ultimately clinched set three with a score of 25-13, resulting in a match sweep of 3-0.
 
LEADERS
Franklin led the way with eight kills, followed by Neal who had seven kills and four blocks. Roberts totaled five kills, Silecky totaled five kills and 11 assists and Ross totaled three kills. Valmus had nine digs, while Kessler had 16 digs and five aces.
 
UP NEXT
TMU is back inside the TMU Volleyball/Wrestling Arena for their final regular season match, where they will face Reinhardt University Wednesday, Nov. 3, at 6:30 p.m.