Ad blocker detected: Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors. Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker on our website.
Here is the place for all other LU sponsored sports. Come here to post about: Men's/Women's Cross Country, Men's Golf, Men's/Women's Soccer, Men's/Women's Tennis, Men's/Women's Track & Field, Women's Lacrosse, Women's Swimming & Dive, Women's Volleyball
The Liberty University volleyball team got stronger as its match against Appalachian State wore on Friday evening at Virginia Tech's Cassell Coliseum. The Mountaineers were able to repel a spirited comeback by the Lady Flames in game three of the Hokie Invite's opening match, wrapping up a 3-0 victory (30-15, 30-18, 30-24).
With the setback, Liberty's record is now 0-5. Appalachian State improves to 4-3.
Appalachian State started the match quickly. After a kill by Liberty senior middle blocker Rachel Denton (Burnet, Texas) tied the score at 1, the Mountaineers ran off four straight points.
A 7-0 burst by Appalachian State midway through the first game gave the Mountaineers a commanding 18-4 lead. From that point, Appalachian State cruised to a 30-15 victory.
Junior right-side hitter Mary Alice Pike (Durham, N.C.) was a bright spot for the Lady Flames in the opening game, recording six of the team's 12 kills. She would continue her stellar play all evening, eventually totaling a Liberty season-high 13 kills and five digs.
Liberty got off to a better start in the second game. Freshman middle blocker Stephanie Stow (Murrieta, Calif.) provided a kill that knotted the score at 7. Appalachian State tallied the next three points, however, and went on for a 30-18 decision.
Stow provided a spark for the Lady Flames in that second game, recording kills on three of her five attack attempts. On the evening, she totaled a career-best eight kills and a .353 attack percentage.
Appalachian State looked to be sailing towards a three-game sweep after the Mountaineers took a 16-4 lead in the third game. Liberty did not fold, however. The Lady Flames trimmed the Appalachian State advantage to just one point on two occasions.
A dump by freshman setter Kallie Corbin (Beaverton, Ore.) cut the margin to 23-22. Two plays later, Corbin assisted on a Stow kill that made it 24-23.
The Mountaineers regrouped as Brittany Zahn tallied four of her 14 kills in the match's waning moments, helping Appalachian State escape with a 30-24 decision.
While Pike and Stow keyed the Liberty offensive attack, Lara Bartolomeo (Jr., S/DS, Huntington Beach, Calif.) led the way on defense, contributing 10 digs. Corbin added eight digs to complement her 25 assists. Denton paced the squad with three blocks.
Chrissy Finch led Appalachian State with 15 kills and a .577 attack percentage. Carla Durham added six blocks.
Liberty will remain at Virginia Tech for a pair of Saturday matches. The Lady Flames will meet the host Hokies at noon before wrapping up their weekend action with a 5 p.m. tilt against George Washington.
The Liberty volleyball team put together its most competitive match to date Saturday afternoon at Virginia Tech before losing to the host Hokies, 3-1 (30-22, 23-30, 30-23, 30-28).
Liberty, playing its first of two Saturday matches, is now 0-6. Virginia Tech won its second straight match at the Hokie Invite to improve its season ledger to 5-3.
Mary Alice Pike (Jr., RS, Durham, N.C.) continued her solid play at the invitational, recording a double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs. Alysson Sanders (R-So., OH, Bear, Del.) also tallied a double-double, totaling 10 kills and 11 digs to go along with a trio of service aces and five blocks.
Freshman setter Kallie Corbin (Beaverton, Ore.) posted a career-best 37 assists and matched a career high with 13 digs. Lara Bartolomeo (Jr., S/DS, Huntington Beach, Calif.) led the Lady Flames with 18 digs. Senior middle blocker Rachel Denton (Burnet, Texas) recorded a Liberty season-high eight blocks (two solo, six assists).
Taylor Parrish spearheaded Virginia Tech’s attack with 13 kills. Libero Amanda Cloyd paced the home team with 27 digs.
Liberty will play its last of three matches at Cassell Coliseum at 5 p.m., taking on George Washington.
Despite a season-high 13 kills by Kendall Nichols (So., OH, Hoover, Ala.) and an all-tournament team honor for freshman setter Kallie Corbin (Beaverton, Ore.), the Liberty Flames volleyball team lost, 3-0 (30-26, 30-28, 30-23), to George Washington Saturday evening in its final match at the Virginia Tech Hokie Invite.
With the setback, Liberty is 0-7 through its first two weekends of play. The Colonials boosted their record to 7-2.
The Lady Flames led through the early stages of the opening game. They took a five-point lead (11-6) on a kill by Alysson Sanders (R-So., OH, Bear, Del.). George Washington then responded with an 8-2 run to take the lead at 14-13.
Liberty enjoyed its last lead of the game (16-15) when Stephanie Stow (Fr., MB, Murrieta, Calif.) recorded a kill off of a Corbin assist. The Colonials took the lead for good at 18-17 and went on for a 30-26 victory.
Coach Shane Pinder’s squad got off to a fast start again in the middle game. Mary Alice Pike (Jr., RS, Durham, N.C.) who tallied double-digit kills for the third straight match with 11, provided one of them to give her team a 6-2 advantage.
The Lady Flames led for nearly the entire game, including a 25-24 advantage after Corbin posted one of her two service aces. Sanders recorded an ace of her own that made it 28-27, Liberty.
George Washington then wrapped up the second game with three straight kills. Two of them came off the right arm of Julienne McLaughlin, who led the Colonials with 19 kills.
As was the case in the initial two games, Liberty controlled the early stages of game three. A Sanders kill, one of eight on the evening for the redshirt sophomore, gave the Lady Flames a 10-5 edge.
The Colonials took control in the middle stages of the final game, enjoying a 23-7 run after that Sanders kill. The university based in Washington, D.C., took the final game and the match by a 30-23 count.
Lara Bartolomeo (Jr., S/DS, Huntington Beach, Calif.) led the Lady Flames with 14 digs. Corbin totaled 37 assists, seven digs and four blocks. Stow ended up with a team-best five blocks.
Maggie Wright provided 21 digs for George Washington, while setter Kaimana Lee contributed 43 assists and six digs.
Liberty will travel to West Point, N.Y. this coming weekend for the Army of One Classic. The Lady Flames’ first of three matches will be a 5 p.m. Friday matchup with Navy.
- By Dalegarz1
- By Purple Haize