GREENWOOD, S.C. – After hitting a season-high .330 in a win over Georgia College in the afternoon match, the Lady Railsplitters (8-9) couldn't keep it going offensively in the second game of the SAC vs. Peach Belt Conference Challenge in a 25-23, 25-14, 25-21 loss to the Lander Bearcats (10-6) on Friday evening. Lincoln Memorial hit just .113 to fall back below .500 and snap its two-game winning streak.
The Lady Railsplitters dug themselves into big holes in all three sets, rallied in each, but were unable to complete the comebacks in any of the three frames to fall to 6-6 all-time against Lander.
Alicia Kessler led Lincoln Memorial with 10 kills on a sizzling .529 attack percentage, but no other Lady Railsplitter finished with a hitting percentage over .150.
Kiera Holland and
Rylee Storms had seven kills apiece but combined for 12 errors.
Lindsey Nartker offset four kills with four errors.
Olivia Brock (16) and
Danielle Stachura (15) combined for 31 assists, while
Erica Whiteaker led the team with 19 digs.
Reyonia Whipped led all players with 14 kills to pace the Lander attack. Kirstin Martindale added 10, while Imari Ashley had seven error-free kills to finish with a .467 attack percentage. Sophia Perkins had a game-high 26 assists, while Hannah McManus led all players with 23 digs.
Lander buried the Lady Railsplitters in a massive hole in the first set, but Lincoln Memorial fought back to nearly pull off a stunning comeback. The Bearcats used three straight kills and three LMU attack errors to score the first six points of the set. Lander continued to cruise from that point on, using another 4-0 run to build a commanding 19-7 lead. However, the Lady Railsplitters came alive after that, ripping off a 10-1 run aided by six Lander attack errors to cut the deficit to 20-17. Lincoln Memorial continued to fight and pulled within one at 24-23, but a kill by Reilly Kuenstler helped the Bearcats finish off the set, 25-23.
The Lady Railsplitters got off to another slow start in set two, falling behind 7-1 after committing four consecutive attack errors. Much like the first set, Lincoln Memorial eventually settled in and fought back into contention to cut the deficit to 16-13 on a kill by Holland. However, the Bearcats absolutely dominated the closing stretch by winning nine of the last 10 rallies to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
The third set played out in nearly identical fashion to the two that preceded it. Lander built a 13-6 cushion by the midway point and continued to hold sway at 16-9 following a setting error. However, the Lady Railsplitters won four straight points to kick-start a run that saw them eventually fight back to tie the set at 20-20 on a Lander attack error. Yet, Lander found a way to come through once again, using four straight kills following a timeout to pull back ahead 24-20. Reyonia Whipple finished off the Bearcats' victory with a kill.
The Lady Railsplitters head to Aiken, S.C. on Saturday to complete the SAC vs. PBC Challenge, facing Augusta at noon before taking on the defending Southeast Region champion USC Aiken Pacers at 4 p.m.
