Score: Meredith 3, N.C. Wesleyan 0 (25-14, 25-15, 25-13)
ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. – The Meredith volleyball team picked up its fourth win in its last five outings by opening up USA South Conference play with a 25-14, 25-15, 25-13 victory over N.C. Wesleyan when the two teams met in Rocky Mount, N.C., on Wednesday evening.
Four Avenging Angel hitters had at least five kills, including
Reagan Kresho, who drove home 10 kills in 23 attempts, closing with a .348 hitting percentage. Caitlyn Russel added nine kills, while
Daven Brabble came through with seven and
Delaney Lowery closed with five. Collectively, Meredith tallied 37 kills as
Lillie Davis dished out a match-high 31 assists.
Meredith's defense, which tallied 58 digs and five solo blocks, stifled the N.C. Wesleyan offense, allowing just 24 kills and forcing 26 errors. The backrow duo of
Megan Murray (16 digs) and
Caroline Prease (13 digs) played a key role in the defensive success for Meredith, while the five different front row players had one solo block each.
FIRST SET: The Avenging Angels amassed 13 kills and a .344 hitting percentage in the opening set. Three straight kills, including two off the hand of Russell, allowed Meredith to separate itself from the Battling Bishops by a 9-5 margin. N.C. Wesleyan answered with a run of its own, trimming the deficit to 14-12, before a service error opened the door for the Avenging Angels. With Prease in serve, and a trio of kills from Lowery, Meredith stretched the lead to 22-15 behind seven unanswered points. Russell and Brabble came through with kills down the stretch to cinch the victory.
SECOND SET: Meredith finished with 12 kills in the second set, positing a .250 hitting percentage along the way. The two teams endured four ties in the first 14 points, reaching a seven-all deadlock, before back-to-back kills from Russell and Davis provided the Avenging Angels with an 11-7 advantage. The lead doubled to eight, 18-10, on a series of slams by Kresho. A brief run by the Battling Bishops closed that gap to five, but two kills down the stretch coupled with blocks from Brabble and
Kinley Copeland secured the 10-point win.
THIRD SET: Again with 12 kills in the set, Meredith's offense was clicking on all cylinders. With the opportunity to clinch its fifth sweep of the season the Avenging Angels streaked out to a 7-1 lead and did not look back. Copeland followed with a slam and an attack error by N.C. Wesleyan resulted in the 10th point for the Avenging Angels. Leading 14-7, after surrendering a kill to Emilee Wilson, Meredith scored five unanswered and used two kills from Kresho in the process, to forge in front 20-8. Kresho and Russell delivered one kill each down the stretch to make for the 12-point difference.
