Box score
BANNER ELK, N.C. --- Megan Epperson (St. John,
Ind.) posted her second straight double-double, notching
match-highs of 13 kills and 12 digs, to pace the Lees-McRae College
women's volleyball team to a three-set sweep of visiting Lander
University on Saturday afternoon in Williams Gymnasium.
Lees-McRae (17-7) won the match in straight sets by scores of
26-24, 25-18, and 25-13, while holding Lander (9-12) to a .027
hitting percentage on the day. The Lady Bobcats posted a .237
hitting percentage of their own, while notching 52 digs and five
blocks en route to their 14th win in their last 15 matches.
Epperson led the way for Lees-McRae, posting the match-high in
kills for the second day in a row, while Whitney Justice (Connelly
Springs, N.C.) notched 11 kills and a scorching .455 hitting
percentage. Megan Mitchell (Minden, Nev.) tallied a match-high 36
assists, as Lauren Fox (Garland, Texas) and Taylor Stice (Franklin,
Tenn.) tallied 11 and nine digs, respectively. Taylor Clendenin
(Statesville, N.C.) chipped in with eight kills and eight digs.
Melissa McCracken (Washington, Ill.) paced the Bearcats with six
kills, while Courtney Simmons (Branchville, S.C.) and Magi
Nottingham (Indianapolis, Ind.) each tallied five kills. McCracken
and Nottingham also led the way for Lander with seven and six digs,
respectively, as Madison Kubal (Dacula, Ga.) chipped in six digs of
her own.
Lander jumped out to an early lead in the first set, opening the
frame with a 9-5 run and extending the margin to 12-7 on a block by
Jordan Rix (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Hannah Dederick (Lugoff, S.C.).
The Lady Bobcats would battle back, launching a 9-3 spurt to take a
16-15 lead before Justice pushed the margin to 21-18 with an
emphatic kill.
Lander fought back later in the set, reeling off three straight
points while facing a 24-21 deficit to even the score at 24-24.
Lees-McRae then closed out the frame with back-to-back points to
take a 1-0 lead in the match with a 26-24 first-set win.
The Lady Bobcats would carry the momentum into the second set,
surging to an early 6-2 lead on a pair of kills from Fox before
stretching the lead to 12-6 with a 6-4 spurt. Lander scored three
of the next four points, trimming the margin to 13-10 before
Lees-McRae went on a 6-3 spurt of its own to push the advantage to
19-13. The Lady Bobcats would close out the stanza with five of the
final seven points to notch a 25-18 second-set win, and take a
commanding 2-0 lead in the match.
Lees-McRae started the third set in much the same way as the
second, opening an early 9-2 lead before extending the margin to
12-3 on a pair of Lander errors. The Lady Bobcats would continue to
dictate play, launching a 10-5 run to take a 22-8 lead on
Epperson's 13th kill of the match. Lander would trim the margin to
23-12 with a 4-1 spurt, before Lees-McRae closed out the set and
the match with two of the frame's final three points.
The Lady Bobcats return to the court on Wednesday when they host
Belmont Abbey College to resume their Conference Carolinas
schedule. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. in Williams
Gymnasium.
- LMC -
