HICKORY, N.C. – The Catawba women's volleyball team traveled to Lenoir-Rhyne for a South Atlantic Conference (SAC) matchup on Tuesday night. The Bears came away with a 3-0 win.
Freshman outside hitter Rebekah Ayers was a bright spot for the blue and white, recording 10 kills on a .316 hitting percentage. Lillie Kate Rogers also notched 10 kills while Maggie Ayers contributed five on a .417 rate. Camden Bizot registered 19 assists, and Riley Hill dug 16 attacks.
Catawba (7-2, 3-2 SAC) was out-attacked by Lenoir-Rhyne (5-3, 2-1 SAC), .314 to .127. The Bears also won the blocks battle 8-3 and served more effectively, recording nine aces to Catawba's two. The blue and white finished better in the digs department, 41-39.
Lenoir-Rhyne opened the match strong by building a 14-7 first-set advantage. Rogers and Rebekah Ayers combined for nine kills in the set to bring the Catawba Indians back, but the Bears pulled away and won the frame 25-18.
Catawba trailed 8-7 in the second set before Ayers twins erupted offensively, uniting for nine kills to build a 21-13 lead. However, the blue and white struggled to land the final attacks in what proved to be the match's turning point. The hosts carried the momentum from their home crowd, coming back to steal the second stanza from Catawba 27-25.
The energy stayed with the Bears after claiming a narrow 9-7 third-set advantage. Lenoir-Rhyne would finish the set on a 16-6 run while not committing a single error to hand Catawba just its second loss of the season.
The Catawba Indians will look to bounce back at home on Friday, September 18th when they host Coker at 6 p.m. at Goodman Arena before hosting Wingate on Saturday at 2 p.m.
