Liberty University
2-4
ETSU
6-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ETSU | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Liberty | 21 | 17 | 19 | 0 |
Lady Flames Fall to ETSU in Invitational Title Match
9/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
In a battle for the championship at the 2016 Liberty Volleyball Invitational, ETSU remained unbeaten on the season with a 3-0 sweep (25-21, 25-17, 25-19) of host Liberty, Saturday at the Vines Center.
ETSU (6-0) won all three of its matches this weekend, claiming the tournament title. The Lady Flames (2-4) posted a 2-1 record at the Liberty Invitational to serve as runner-up.
Liberty was represented on the all-tournament team by Leah Clayton and Michelle Melendez. The Buccaneers' Briana Allmon was named Tournament MVP, joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Hailey Aguilar and AJ Lux. Reeana Richardson of Hampton and USC Upstate's Madison Haake were also honored.
For the match, ETSU outhit Liberty, .228-.119. The Lady Flames led, 10-8, in blocks, while the Bucs held the edge in digs (60-41) and aces (4-0).
Rylee Milhorn led all players with 15 kills for ETSU, while Allmon scored 12 kills. Lux chipped in nine kills, while Alyssa Kvarta registered a double-double with 38 assists and 10 digs. Kaela Massey recorded five blocks, while Aguilar collected a match-high 18 digs.
Clayton sent down 12 kills to pace the Lady Flames, while Sydney Morris recorded a career-high 11 kills. Anna Willey dished out 26 assists, while Anna Gragg (7 blocks) and Casey Goodwin (6) both set career highs in blocks. Melendez collected a team-high 11 digs.
The Buccaneers led set one from start to finish, scoring a 25-21 victory. During the opening session, the guests hit .154, compared to .079 for the Lady Flames. Allmon and Milhorn converted five kills apiece for ETSU in the first set, while Liberty countered with four blocks.
Liberty trimmed its deficit to 18-15 in the second set, before Allmon sent down a kill to spark ETSU's 7-2 run to a 25-17 set-two victory. Gragg assisted on all four of Liberty's blocks during set two, while Clayton scored five kills. Milhorn and Allmon registered six and five kills, respectively, for the Buccaneers.
Set three proved to be tightly contested, with eight ties and three lead changes. Liberty took the lead, 14-13, on a kill from Clayton. Three straight points put the visitors ahead to stay, despite the Lady Flames trimming the deficit to one point twice. Leading by a narrow, 17-16, margin, ETSU outscored the Lady Flames 8-3, down the stretch to complete the sweep.
The Buccaneers outhit Liberty, .343-.182 during set three, despite Morris scoring a set-best six kills. Lux registered five kills for the visitors in the final set.
The Lady Flames return to the road for their next nine matches, beginning with a trip to Davidson, N.C., next Friday and Saturday. While at the Davidson Wildcat Classic, Liberty will face USC Upstate for the second straight weekend, 2015 SoCon champion Furman and host team Davidson.
