Skyhawks extend win streak to four at Brenau
GAINESVILLE, Ga. (Nov. 3, 2020) – The Point University volleyball team traveled to Brenau University Tuesday for an Appalachian Athletic Conference doubleheader matchup and the Skyhawks defeated the Golden Tigers twice to extend their record on the season to 7-4.
First match
After dropping the first match 25-18, the Skyhawks bounced back to defeat Brenau in the next three sets 25-20, 25-20, 25-21.
Brenau went on a 6-0 run to close out the first set, taking advantage of four Skyhawk errors during that run. In the second set, the Skyhawks led 9-5 before a kill by Mary Rimmer sent Point on a 5-0 run to extend their lead out by nine. Brenau worked their way back to only trailing by four, but a kill by Te'a Owens gave Point the set win and put the match score at 1-1.
The third set was close, with the score tied at 17. Back-to-back errors by Brenau and a kill by Rimmer gave the Skyhawks a three-point lead before Brenau would come back and only trail by one. With the score at 20-19, Point would go on a 5-1 run to close out the set, with the rally beginning on back-to-back kills by Rachael Ellis and Rimmer.
After trailing 6-5 in set four, Point jumped ahead 9-6 and would remain in the lead the rest of the set and win the first match.
Four Skyhawks were in the double-digit column for kills and digs in the first match. Ellis had a game-high of 13 kills, followed by Rimmer with 12, Sarah Baucham with 11 and Owens with 10. On the defensive side, Point was led by Madison Bentley with 15 digs and was followed by Audrey Blaschke and Whitney Ward with 13 digs and Kaitlyn Hawke rounded it out with 11 digs. Hawke also recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 41 assists.
Second match
Point captured their second win over Brenau in a similar fashion as the first match with a four set victory. Point jumped out with a dominating 25-14 win in set one, only allowing the Golden Tigers the lead in the set's opening point. Point would steadily increase their lead in set one, going on an 8-2 run to extend their lead out to eight. The Skyhawks would also close out the set on a 6-0 run, taking advantage of three Brenau errors during their set-closing rally.
In the second set, the score was tied at 18 before five Point errors would help Brenau capture the second set 25-20 and put the match score at 1-1.
The third set was similar to the second, with the score being tied at 18. An ace by Blaschke followed by three Brenau errors helped Point pull ahead and hold the lead for the rest of the set and win 25-22.
In the fourth set, Brenau scored first, but that was the only lead the Skyhawks would allow the Golden Tigers as Point would score the next three points to earn the lead. Brenau closely trailed the entire set before four kills in a row, first by Baucham then the rest by Ellis, helped Point extend their lead 21-14. Point would then earn their next four points by kills by Baucham, Rimmer, Ellis and Olivia Marling who earned the set point from her kill and helped Point close out the match with a 25-19 win.
Bentley and Anastasya Reyes led the defensive front for Point with 14 and 13 digs, respectively. Hawke anchored the offense with 38 assists and Owens and Baucham led the offense with 13 and 12 kills, respectively.
Up next
Point will continue their AAC road series with a trip to Tennessee as the Skyhawks face Tennessee Wesleyan on Friday, Nov. 6, and Bryan on Saturday, Nov. 7. The Skyhawks will close out their weekend road series with a trip to North Carolina to face St. Andrews on Sunday, Nov. 8.