HARROGATE, Tenn. – With a lockdown defensive effort serving as the catalyst, the Lady Railsplitters cruised past the King Tornado in straight sets to conclude the first day of the LMU Volleyball Tournament and notch the program's first 2-0 start since 2010 on Friday night inside of a raucous Mary Mars Gym. Lincoln Memorial allowed King to reach 20 points in the opening frame, but held the visitors to just 16 and 12, respectively, over the final two.
 
The Lady Railsplitters' defense looked downright frightening at times during a match that lasted a shade over 60 minutes. King finished with a .000 attack percentage and produced just 28 kills on 114 attempts, a number that was a product of an LMU block that kept the ball from even reaching its side of the net. The Lady Railsplitters, meanwhile, made the most of their 85 attempts, converting 31 kills and making just 11 errors.
 
Offensively, Lincoln Memorial rode another balanced attack to victory. Danielle Ged led the team with seven kills on only 13 error-free attempts and also chipped in four blocks. Kiera Holland and Tone Gill logged six kills apiece and combined for 10 blocks. Rylee Storms accumulated five kills and two blocks, while Samantha Cash punched down four kills to go along with a team-high 22 assists and six digs. Erica Whiteaker led all players with 23 digs.
 
Tristyn Lozano was the only King player to finish with a positive attack percentage, tallying nine kills with a .240 clip. Cathy Scaniffe produced eight kills with nine errors, while Becca Huddleston cancelled out seven kills with eight errors.
 
The win extended Lincoln Memorial's run of utter dominance against King, as the Lady Railsplitters have now defeated the Tornado seven consecutive times dating back to the 1998 season.
 
The Lady Railsplitters never trailed in the opening set, a theme that perpetuated throughout the match. The home team used a 5-0 run powered by three kills to take a 14-9 lead. The Tornado battled back and cut the deficit to one on two separate occasions down the stretch, but a late 5-1 spurt gave Lincoln Memorial a 23-18 cushion. Ged capped the 25-20 win with a kill.
 
King took its first lead of the match early in the second set with a slim 3-2 edge, but a 6-1 spurt gave the Lady Railsplitters the lead for good. After the Tornado cut the deficit to 10-8, LMU ripped off a 9-1 run to put the set out of reach. Back-to-back attack errors eventually ended the set, 25-16, in favor of the Lady Railsplitters.
 
The Tornado were within striking distance midway through the third frame, trailing 12-9 following an LMU miscue. However, the Lady Railsplitters ended the match on a 13-3 run, which included the final six points of the set.
 
Lincoln Memorial held King to a negative attack percentage in every set for the exception of the second, when the Tornado mustered a meager .071 clip.
 
Lincoln Memorial wraps up the LMU Volleyball Tournament against Erskine at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday at Mary Mars Gym.