BLUEFIELD, Va. – A bounce back performance by Truett McConnel women's volleyball (21-8, 11-4 AAC) led to its 11
th conference win with a 3-1 (14-25, 25-21, 25-23, 25-19) win over Bluefield (5-16, 2-13 AAC) Saturday afternoon.
Faith Clarkson led the team in kills with 11 on the day, marking her fourth double-digit kill match of the season.
Caroline Yeager led with 18 assists while
Julia Fisher had a team-leading 17 digs.
The Rams opened the first set with a 4-0 lead before a 6-1 run by the Lady Bears brought them in front early. With a 9-7 Truett lead, BU produced a scoring run of 5-0 to take the lead before three unanswered TMU points tied things up. Eight consecutive points by the Rams put the set out of reach for the Lady Bears as they only managed two points the rest of the way.
The home team had an early lead in set two as it held a 9-7 mark. Truett responded with a 5-2 scoring run which was helped by kills from Clarkson and
Alexis Mills. Bluefield tied the set at 12-12 before a 5-1 run gave TMU the lead once more.
With the Lady Bears up 19-15 late, a 6-2 sequence saw BU tie the set at 21-21 with three errors by the away team. A duo of kills by Clarkson highlighted a set-ending 4-0 run, tying the match at 1-1.
TMU dominated early in the third with scores of 9-3 and 12-5 before Bluefield used a combined 7-2 run to draw within two. Coming out of a self-called timeout with a one-point lead, the Lady Bears scored six of the next eight points to establish a 22-17 lead late in the set. A 5-1 run by BU forced a 24-23 score, but an error on the serve gave Truett the final point and the 2-1 match lead.
With Yeager on the serve, the Lady Bears started set four hot with a 5-0 score. The Rams matched the away squad in scoring but could not break through, resulting in a 12-7 TMU lead. In front by three, Truett scored four unanswered to take control of the set. Fisher and Cook provided the final kills of the set to give the Lady Bears Appalachian Athletic Conference. win number 11.
TMU is back at the Harris Athletic Complex with a 6:30 p.m. match vs. Montreat on Tuesday, October 20.
