BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University women's volleyball team lost the first two set against Conference Carolinas opponent Converse before mounting a comeback attempt by winning the third and fourth sets. However, the comeback was thwarted by the Valkyries in the fifth set.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: King 2, Converse 3 (24-26, 19-25, 25-22, 25-21, 12-15)
LOCATION: Student Center Complex, Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 4-8, 2-6 Conference Carolinas | Converse 11-4, 5-1 Conference Carolinas
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
- Converse had the slight early lead, but back-to-back kills from Gracia Love gave King the 5-6 advantage.
- The Valkyries responded with five points in a row and didn't trail the rest of the match.
- The Tornado did tie it at 24 with a kill from Love but that was the final points for King in the opening set as Converse won 26-24.
- Love tallied 7 kills in the opening set.
Second Set
- The Valkyries continued their momentum scoring the first three points of the second set. King responded with four straight including a kill from Riley Nelson and an ace from Bailey Fersner.
- Converse had a couple of scoring runs to bring their lead to six. After a bit of trading points, Converse took the second set with their six point lead.
Third Set
- Facing a sweep, King kept it competitive with Converse in the early points.
- The Tornado found their stride with an 8-1 scoring run that concluded with three straight aces from Gabri Puertas.
- While Converse would fight back to a tie at 16, King took the lead back with a kill from Gracia Love, and two subsequent kills from Capri Johnson to take the lead for good late in the set.
- Kylie Love sealed the 25-22 set win with a kill.
Fourth Set
- King kept the momentum going into the fourth set scoring the first four points and quickly extended it to a 6-1 lead. The Tornado held the lead for the entire set.
- Izzy Krick had a couple of kills as King settled into their lead.
- Bailey Fersner had an ace and sealed the fourth set win her third kill of the set to send King into the fifth set.
Fifth Set
- Converse had a few attack errors that gave King a quick lead in the final set But the Valkyries then scored 5 of the next 6 points to take the lead.
- Gracia Love had a kill to start a three point scoring run to tie the set at 7 but Converse swiftly took the lead back.
- King attempted a late comeback by capitalizing on a service error from converse and a kill from Riley Nelson but Converse sealed the match win with back-to-back kills.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
FOR THE FOES
- Noemia Chiacchio had a match-high 18 kills and was one dig away from a double-double.
- Mackenzie Day had 19 digs
- Ariel Bryant had three service aces while Ella Ruckman and Alayah Robertson each contributed two.
- Alysha Arroyo recorded 50 assists.
UP NEXT
The King University women's volleyball team will hit the road again as they head to Chowan for a match on Friday night. The scheduled start is 7 p.m.
