COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. --- The Lees-McRae
women's volleyball team dropped a pair of five-set thrillers on the
final day of the Hyatt Place Volleyball Invitational, being hosted
by the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.
Fort Lewis (6-1) rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Lady
Bobcats (3-6) in five sets on Saturday morning, and host Colorado
Springs (5-3) rallied from a 2-1 disadvantage to knock off
Lees-McRae in a five-frame thriller.
Megan Epperson (St. John, Ind.) led the way for Lees-McRae on
the day, recording her third and fourth double-doubles of the
weekend with 40 kills and 34 digs, including a season-high 21 kills
against Fort Lewis. Whitney Justice (Connelly Springs, N.C.)
chipped in 31 kills of her own, while Megan Mitchell (Minden, Nev.)
tied her season high of 51 assist in each match to total 102
helpers on the day.
Match One: Fort Lewis 3, Lees-McRae 2 (23-25, 21-25, 25-23,
25-21, 15-12) - Box
Score
Fort Lewis opened the first set with an 8-5 run before
Lees-McRae rallied with a 5-2 spurt to even the score at 10-10. The
Lady Bobcats continued to control the flow of the frame, launching
a 13-9 run before closing out the 25-23 first-set win.
Lees-McRae was forced to come from behind once again in the
second set, rallying from a 14-12 deficit to win the frame by a
score of 25-21 and take a 2-0 lead in the match. Fort Lewis would
respond in the third set, rallying from an early 6-2 hole to win
the frame and pull within one of the Lady Bobcats.
The Skyhawks continued the comeback in the fourth frame,
rallying from a 20-16 deficit to even the match with a 25-21
fourth-set victory on the heels of a 9-1 run. Fort Lewis would go
on to complete the comeback in the final frame, opening an early
8-2 lead and holding off a late Lees-McRae rally to cap the 3-2
win.
Match Two: Colorado Springs 3, Lees-McRae 2 (25-21, 28-30,
23-25, 25-20, 15-8) - Box
Score
Lees-McRae and Colorado Springs engaged in an epic battle in the
Lady Bobcats' final match of the weekend, combining for 183 digs
and 126 kills in a thrilling five-set melee. Four Mountain Lions
recorded double-digits in kills, while Lees-McRae's Dana Oliver
(Davie, Fla.) registered a match- and season-high 30 digs.
The Mountain Lions jumped out to an early 14-8 lead on their
home court in the first set, staving off a late Lees-McRae comeback
bid to take the opening frame by a 25-21 score. The Lady Bobcats
responded in the second set, rallying from a 10-6 deficit to even
the match at 1-1 with 30-28 victory in a marathon second frame.
Lees-McRae would continue to make its presence known in the
third set, jumping out to a 9-6 lead and rallying from several late
deficits to take a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-23 win in the
third frame. Colorado Springs would refuse to concede, opening an
early 10-5 advantage in the fourth set and holding on for a 25-20
win to even the match after Lees-McRae fought off four set
points.
The Mountain Lions carried the momentum into the deciding fifth
set, opening an 11-4 lead on the heels of an early 8-0 run before
capping the comeback with a 15-8 win in the fifth and final
frame.
Lees-McRae returns to the court on Tuesday when the Lady Bobcats
host Queens University of Charlotte to resume Conference Carolinas
play. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Williams Gymnasium.
- LMC -
