Mount Olive women’s volleyball wins at Erskine

DUE WEST, S.C. – Behind three players with double-digit kills, the University of Mount Olive women’s volleyball team captured a 3-1 victory by scores of 25-18, 25-22, 16-25, 25-12 over Erskine on Friday night in Conference Carolinas action.

With the win, the Trojans improved to 12-7 this season with a 5-1 mark in league action. Mount Olive has won six of its last seven matches, including five conference victories. Meanwhile, the Flying Fleet fell to 4-15 overall behind a 1-9 mark in conference action.

Sophomores Neza Pec and Ashlyn Stone tied for the team lead with 12 kills in the match. Pec posted her second kill/dig double-double of the season with 12 kills and 16 digs, while Stone finished with the identical amount of kills and six digs. Senior Amara Eziakonwa totaled double-digit kills for a third consecutive match with 11. Senior Jenna Myer had 27 assists and senior Madison Goodman added 15.

Sophomore Morgan Prots matched a season-high with 31 digs and has totaled at least 20 digs in seven matches this season. Pec ranked second on the team with 16 digs in the contest, while freshman Sam Widelski had seven digs and Stone had six digs. Senior Alyssa Jackson controlled the net with six blocks, while Eziakonwa assisted the defensive effort with four blocks.

In the first set, the Trojans raced out to a 12-4 advantage behind kills from four different players before both sides traded the next 16 points. Erskine answered with a 6-2 run to trim the deficit to 22-18 before UMO closed out the set by a 25-18 margin after posting three consecutive points.

The Trojans established a 2-0 advantage after the second set featured six ties. UMO took a 15-11 lead following a service ace from Widelski before the Flying Fleet countered with back-to-back points to cut the lead to 15-13. Mount Olive scored four of the following five points before Erskine rallied off five straight points to tie the match, 19-19. Both sides exchanged the next seven points before UMO took the second set 25-22 behind a kill from Eziakonwa and an ace from Goodman.

The Flying Fleet cut into the deficit after capturing the third set by a 25-16 margin. Erskine established an early 9-4 advantage, but Mount Olive capitalized on a pair of attacking errors to close the gap to 9-6. The Flying Fleet totaled five of the following seven points to take a 14-8 lead before both teams traded points. Erskine used a 6-1 run to claim the third set after taking advantage of five errors by the Trojans.

Mount Olive sealed the win in the fourth set behind 17 kills. UMO took the lead at 12-6 following six straight points, including two kills from Jackson. The Flying Fleet countered with a 4-1 run to trim the deficit to 13-10 before the Trojans tallied nine unanswered points to lead 22-10. Erskine halted the run with a kill before Mount Olive used a 3-1 run to earn the match victory, 25-12.