PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke volleyball team battled through five sets on Friday night to win its first Peach Belt Conference match of the season against the visiting Bobcats of Georgia College inside of the English E. Jones Center.
UNCP (7-9, 1-4 PBC) dropped the first set, 25-20, but battled back to win set number two, 25-21. The Bobcats (3-12, 1-7) outlasted the Black and Gold through multiple set points in the third frame, 27-25, but the Lady Braves would force a fifth set after winning the fourth set, 25-18. The final stanza was a back-and-forth battle, but UNCP came out on top, claiming the 16-14 last-set triumph. The victory is the first PBC win for second-year head coach Angie Byrd.
"It's a great feeling to get that first conference win. Maybe it will be a little easier on the girls now to accomplish the goals we've set out for them," said UNCP assistant volleyball coach Doug Byrd.
UNCP had three players register double-doubles as Shekinah-Joy Toloumu (59 assists, 14 digs), Sabrina Gonzalez (14 kills, 16 digs) and Sarah Bower (14 kills, 13 digs), made major contributions to the five-set triumph.
Caroline Pridgen carried the UNCP offense with 18 kills and an impressive .452 hitting percentage. Cecilia Brandon turned in another strong performance, adding 12 kills for the Black and Gold. Pridgen led the Braves at the net finishing with four blocks, including one solo block. Danielle Brown paced the defense collecting 28 digs and Toloumu totaled three service aces.
Georgia College was led by Rachel Reynolds who slammed down a match-high 20 kills. Micayla Patterson controlled the ball offensively, distributing out 54 assists, while Caroline Ham tallied four service aces in the match.
"Tomorrow we need to come out strong, come out the way we finished tonight," said Byrd.
The Lady Braves return to the court tomorrow in a tri-match, hosting PBC opponent GRU Augusta (2-11, 0-6 PBC) and regional rival Fayetteville State (8-3). Match times are scheduled for noon (UNCP v. GRU), 2 p.m. (GRU v. Fayetteville State) and 4 p.m. (UNCP v. Fayetteville State). All matches are played inside of the English E. Jones Center.
To watch the full game click HERE.
