VALDOSTA, Ga. – Sometimes in sports, development of continuity leads to results immediately, and sometimes those results take time. Saturday afternoon, the Trevecca Nazarene University volleyball team continued to show grit - and perhaps the best balance they have all season - but the result didn't fall their way.
Trevecca (3-8, 1-1 GSC) wrapped up their opening weekend of Gulf South Conference play with a trip to south Georgia to take on the Blazers of Valdosta State (7-7, 1-1 GSC), and while Trevecca did hang close, it was ultimately VSU that emerged victorious, 3-1.
SERIES HISTORY
The two teams are beginning their third season as conference foes - and the conference matches represent the entire history of the series. VSU is 4-1 all-time against TNU, and the Trojans have never won in Valdosta.
MATCH RECAP
VSU opened the match on a 6-2 run which was interrupted only by a kill from Katilyn Grant and a block by Emma Schnitzer and Jordan Hunt. A pair of kills from Zoie Elrod as a part of a 3-1 Trevecca spurt helped Trevecca claw back to within a pair at 8-6, and while Trevecca kept the margin close, they were unable to get closer. With the Trojans down 14-12 midway through the set, VSU took control with a 6-0 run to push their lead out to 20-12. Trevecca answered with three kills from Grant and an ace from Lilly Vanbebber as a part of a 7-2 rally, but VSU held on to take the set 25-22.
Trevecca opened a small 3-2 lead early in set two, and 10 points into the frame, the score was deadlocked at 5-5. A 7-2 VSU run gave the Blazers a 12-7 lead, but Trevecca answered with a 4-1 run to claw the margin back to two at 13-11. From there, though, the Blazers surged to a 19-12 lead, and Trevecca was unable to get back within striking distance, and VSU took the set 25-18 to go up 2-0.
VSU looked to take control early in the third stanza, as the Blazers scored the first five points, but Trevecca dug deep and responded. Grant and Elrod each had kills, and Isabella Sherrod notched a trio of aces as TNU stormed back to take the lead 6-5. Consecutive kills from Grant, followed by a block from Grant and Schnitzer helped TNU take a 10-6 lead, and the Trojans held the Blazers at arms' length for the remainder of the set. Elrod had the kill to end things in the set with a 25-22 Trevecca win, as TNU forces a fourth set.
TNU led for much of the early going in set four. Ellis and Grant had kills, and Elrod and Grant combined on a block, as a part of a 5-0 Trevecca run that gave TNU a 5-3 lead, and the Trojans and Blazers swapped 5-1 runs leaving Trevecca with an 11-9 lead. As the Trojans continued to lead, VSU rattled off five straight points to give the Blazers the 16-13 lead. VSU held the lead late into the set, but Trevecca mounted one last charge with a kill and an ace from Schnitzer, and a kill from Elrod that drew Trevecca even at 21-21. VSU, though, won five of the final seven points in the match to take the set 25-23, and the match 3-1.
TROJAN HIGHLIGHTS
- Brynne Krangnes handed out a season-high in assists for the second match in a row. The sophomore transfer recorded 37 assists in the match.
- Three Trojans reached double figures in digs, led by Schnitzer with 17 for her second double-double of the season. Lilly Vanbebber notched 14 digs in the match, and Isabella Sherrod added 13.
- Sherrod recorded a team-leading four service aces, while Grand, Schnitzer, and Jordan Hunt each had four blocks.
UP NEXT
Trevecca will return home to open a four-match home stand on Tuesday, September 22. The Trojans will open the string with a tilt against the Chargers of the University of Alabama-Huntsville (10-1, 2-0 GSC) at 6 p.m.
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