University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Radford
Radford Edges Bulldog Volleyball, 3-1
10.03.2014 | Women's Volleyball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – UNC Asheville gave defending Big South Conference volleyball champion Radford all it wanted Friday night, but the Highlanders got key points late in the third and fourth sets to slip past the Bulldogs, 3-1 at Justice Center.
Asheville (3-14, 0-2 BSC) won the first set 25-18 before Radford rallied to win the second set 25-17.
In the third set, the Bulldogs led 24-21 but the Highlanders scored the final five points to take the lead in the match, 26-24.
Asheville rallied from a four-point deficit in the fourth set to tie the match at 23-23 and 24-24. However, the Highlanders got a kill and a service ace to win their fourth straight match at Justice Center.
RU was led by Rachel Wiechecki with a game-high 18 kills and 18 digs. Maddie Palmer added 12 kills, while Emma Deininger picked up 11 kills.
The home team got a great match from Christine Lakatos with 11 kills, 12 digs and six blocks. Shelby Erickson chipped in 10 kills along with Catherine Fischer. Bryn Pfieffer recorded a career-high 24 digs.
Asheville did a great job blocking on the night with 12.5 blocks. RU had 62 kills and hit .201 for the match. The Bulldogs had 42 kills and hit .162 on the night.
The key set was the third one. Tied at 20-20, the Bulldogs went on a 4-1 run to seize a 24-21 lead. Erickson had two kills in the run and a Savanna Austin service ace had the home team at set point.
But the defending champs rallied behind two kills from Wiechecki and a block to go up 25-24. Savanna Burton and Deininger teamed up for a block to give RU the 26-24 win in set three.
In the fourth set, Asheville trailed most of the way before Fischer had three late kills to get the set tied at 24-24. Tied at 25-25, Deininger delivered a kill to put RU in front for good. Burton finished the match off with a service ace.
UNC Asheville hosts Liberty Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m., while Radford travels to Gardner-Webb on Saturday for a 5 p.m. first serve.
