Mars Hill sweeps day two of Converse Invitational
The Mars Hill volleyball team (6-3) won both games on Saturday to finish the Converse Invitational with a 3-1 record on the weekend. The Lions downed Valdosta State and Converse both in three sets.
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Mars Hill volleyball team (6-3) won both games on Saturday to finish the Converse Invitational with a 3-1 record on the weekend. The Lions downed Valdosta State and Converse both in three sets.
GAME ONE: MHU 3, VSU 0
Mars Hill opened up day two of the Converse Invitational with a convincing 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-22) victory over Valdosta State.
The Lions offense dominated the first set, hitting .526 in the opening frame compared to Valdosta State's .087. Maddie Spurgeon knocked down three aces and two kills. Sarah Goddard added two aces and three kills.
Tied at 10 in the second set, the Lions were able to take a lead they would not relinquish for the remainder of the frame, reeling off four straight points. They would close out the set on an 11-6 run.
The Blazers dominated the opening half of the third set, at one point leading Mars Hill by a score of 12-6, but Mars Hill rallied back to take nine of the next 12 points to tie the game at 15 late. Tied at 21 in the final moments of the set, the Lions resiliency shone through as they closed out the game on a 4-1 run, bookended by Spurgeon and Goddard aces.
Chole Chubilleau led all players with 11 kills and had seven digs along with two aces. Tammy Reyes-Perez and Aurora Nero each had 10 digs for the Blazers.
Goddard led the Lions with eight kills and a .467 hitting percentage. She had three aces and added five digs. Spurgeon had a game-high four aces to go along with six kills. Sally Anne Johnson dominated defensively, knocking down five blocks and adding six kills.
GAME TWO: MHU 3, CON 0
Sally Anne Johnson's 14 kills paced the Mars Hill offense as they picked up their second win of the day and third in a row with a 3-0 (25-10, 25-16, 25-16) over Converse.
Johnson had four kills in the opening set followed by Elizabeth Kaeser's two kills and two aces.
The second set was a tighter affair as the teams were tied at nine early on. The Lions created distance by taking four straight points and seven of the next eight to go up 16-10. The Valkyries pulled within three--19-16--until a kill from Maddie Spurgeon was the catalyst for the Lions to take the final five points of the set.
Mars Hill closed out Converse in the third set by taking five of the last six points in the game, ending with Abby King's fifth ace of the contest.
Morgan Pearson led Converse with seven kills and added 10 digs. Sydney Allen and Elizabeth Yohe each had a team-high 17 digs.
Kaeser and Sarah Goddard added eight kills behind Johnson's team-high. King had 16 assists to go along with her game-high five aces and added five digs. Ully Martins led all players with 19 digs.
The Lions return home to Stanford Arena and conference play on Tuesday, September 11 with a 7 p.m. contest against Newberry.
