ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A combined .148 hitting percentage haunted the UNC Pembroke volleyball team Friday in their season-opening matches at the Eckerd College Invitational, leading to a pair of three-set losses to Oklahoma Baptist and host Eckerd.
The Bison (1-0) were too much for the Braves (0-2) from the first serve of the opening set in the day's first match, grabbing a 25-14 victory. The Black & Gold rebounded in set two, but could not take advantage of a set point, eventually falling 27-25. The squad from the Midwest came out firing to the tune of a .351 hitting percentage in the final set, toppling UNCP 25-19.
Oklahoma Baptist outhit the Braves .293 to .152 overall, racking up 45 kills to UNCP's 31. The Black & Gold notched their best hitting percentage in the third set, a .185 clip, while the Bison hit .364 in their dominant opening set. OBU slightly edged out the Braves in digs (48-47) and blocks (5-4).
Makalyah Elliot paced UNCP with 11 kills and 25 attacks for a .280 hitting percentage.
Caroline Pridgen added six kills, while
Alicia Paeplow racked up five. Paeplow added eight assists, second on the team to
Bailee Jones' 18. Paeplow and Jones both added a service ace and
Cayce Bell led all Braves with 13 digs in the match.
The Black & Gold played their best set of the day in terms of hitting percentage in the final set of match two, hitting .231 with nine kills. But that wasn't enough to overcome the powerful attack of the Tritons, who managed a .383 hitting percentage across all three sets, including marks of over .400 in the final two sets.
Elliot, Pridgen and
Madelyn Ashwell all recorded at least four kills and 11 attacks and eight Braves dug the ball multiple times. UNCP's five blocks in the match were one more than Eckerd, with
Alexis Dunham recording the lone solo block.
The Braves are back in action Saturday, wrapping up the Eckerd College Invitational with a pair of matches at 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. UNCP will take on Kentucky State (0-1) first thing in the morning and complete the day with a tilt against New Haven (1-0). The Chargers of New Haven downed Kentucky State in straight sets Friday afternoon.
