Box score
BANNER ELK, N.C. --- The Pfeiffer University
men's volleyball team posted 15 blocks and a .314 hitting
percentage en route to a hard-fought 3-1 victory over Lees-McRae
College in Conference Carolinas play on Saturday afternoon in
Williams Gymnasium.
Pfeiffer (7-1, 5-0 CC) won the match by scores of 25-20, 25-22,
21-25, and 25-22, staying unbeaten in conference play while
limiting Lees-McRae (5-5, 2-1 CC) to a hitting percentage of .217
on the afternoon. The Falcons recorded 51 digs and 15 blocks, as
Lees-McRae dug out 33 Pfeiffer attacks and posted 10 stuffs.
Jose Ribas (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) paced the Bobcats with a
match-high 18 kills, recording a .293 hitting percentage, as John
Lucas (Cincinnati, Ohio) chipped in 15 smashes and seven digs.
Joshua Jones (Christmas, Fla.) added 10 kills and a .474 hitting
percentage, as Randy Ramirez (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) posted a
match-high 50 assists. National digs leader Efrain Negron (Caguas,
Puerto Rico) dug out 14 Pfeiffer attacks, as Jones paced the
Bobcats with six blocks (two solo, four assists).
Quentin Moore led the way for Pfeiffer with 15 kills and a .290
hitting percentage, as CJ Coatsworth added 11 smashes. Konstantin
Weise posted eight kills and a match-high eight blocks (eight
assists), as Mark Hess dug out a contest-best 16 Bobcat attacks.
Micah Bortner also added 10 digs for the Falcons, while David
Specian posted 41 assists.
Pfeiffer started off strong in the first set, taking a 16-11
lead on a block by Weise and Moore. After the Falcons pushed the
margin to 18-12, the Bobcats responded with a 5-1 spurt to close
the gap to 19-17 on a kill by Matt Harpenau (Cincinnati, Ohio). The
Falcons would answer with a 5-2 run, widening the margin to 24-19
before closing out the set on a Specian block.
The Falcons carried the momentum into the second, taking an
early 14-8 lead on a Specian kill. Lees-McRae answered with a 7-4
spurt, trimming the margin to 18-15 on back-to-back kills by Jones
before launching a 7-5 run to cut the lead to 23-22 on a Ribas
smash. Pfeiffer countered with back-to-back points, taking the set
on a block by Coatsworth and Lance Johnson.
Lees-McRae fought back in the tightly-contested third set,
taking a 16-14 lead on a Ribas kill before Pfeiffer evened the
tally at 19-19 following a block by Weise and Bortner. The Bobcats
would respond with a 6-2 surge, claiming the set on a Ribas kill to
halve the Falcons' lead to 2-1.
The fourth set proved to be a battle of runs, with Lees-McRae
responded to a 10-6 deficit with an 8-2 spurt, claiming a 14-12
advantage on a solo block by Harpenau. Pfeiffer would answer with a
6-1 run of its own, taking an 18-15 lead following a stuff by Weise
and Coatsworth. After the Bobcats countered with a 6-3 spurt to
even the tally at 21-21 on a Falcon miscue, Pfeiffer took the set
and match with a 4-1 run, which was capped by a block by Johnson
and Weise.
Lees-McRae returns to the court on Thursday, February 23 when
the Bobcats travel to Bristol, Tenn. to take on King College in
conference play at 7 p.m.
- LMC -
