Junior outside hitter,
Erin Wyatt, had a double with 13 kills and 17 digs in the Panthers five-set loss to Belmont. The final game of the Panther Invitational was another nail-biter for the Panthers. The battle came down to extra points in the fifth set before the Bruins could claim victory, 21 – 19.
Senior
Julianna Truscott picked up right where she left off in set one with a kill on the first play of the game. The teams traded points until the Bruins went on a run, going up 18 – 13 over the Panthers.
Livy Kowalkowski served up an ace, igniting the Panthers to close the gap.
Kayla Broom came up with a huge block with the Bruins holding set point, but at 24 – 23 the Bruins won the joust and the set 25 – 23.
The second set began with a tactical
Laura Ehieze push to the back corner. The Panthers took the lead at 3 – 2 with a Truscott kill on a
Jenna Brown assist and never relinquished it in the second set. A Truscott-Ehieze block stopped the Bruins attempt at a comeback. Ehieze shut the door on the second set with a kill. The Panthers won the second set 25 – 21, tying the match at one set a piece.
Laughlin Murray served up back-to-back aces in the third to give the Panthers a 6-2 lead.
Izzy Durnell and
Kayla Broom came up with a huge block at 8 – 4. The Panthers continued to dominate the nets as Ehieze picked four block assists, Wyatt had three, and Broom and
Evoni Lemons each had two. Wyatt saved a hard hit ball with a beautiful dig setting Lemons up for the kill pushing the Panthers to a 25 - 21 victory.
Lemons got things started in the fourth set with a kill. The Panthers kept it close tying it up seven times with a couple of lead changes. However, the Bruins went on a run and the Panthers could not fully bounce back. The Bruins took the fourth set 25 – 19.
Wyatt earned the first points of the fifth set with a push to the deep corner. A block and a kill by Truscott put the Panthers up 6 – 4 over the Bruins. There were a total of 13 tied scores and four lead changes in the fifth set. At 15-all
Maren Palmer set Ehieze for the kill giving the Panthers the advantage. The teams traded points, and 19-19 Palmer to Ehieze once again gave the Panthers the advantage. Two long rallies ended in kills by the Bruins, who took home victory 21 – 19.
Multiple Panthers excelled on the court throughout the entire match. As
Erin Wyatt earned a double-double,
Kayla Broom just missed one with nine kills and eight block assists. Ehieze was also close to a double-double with ten kills and six block assists alongside Lemons who had nine kills and seven digs. Kowalkowski led the team in digs with 19, Truscott led the team in kills once again with 15, while Brown led the team in assists with 31.
The Panthers set out on a month-long road trip beginning at the Jacksonville Invitational in Jacksonville, FL on Sept 2 versus Presbyterian at 1 p.m.
Final Scores of the Panther Invitational:
Belmont at Auburn (0 – 3): 23 – 25, 19 – 25, 19 – 25
Marist at Georgia State (0 – 3): 25 – 21, 25 – 23, 25 – 21
Marist at Belmont (3 – 1): 25 – 18, 25 – 22, 16 – 25, 25 – 13
Auburn at Georgia State (3 – 1): 22 – 25, 26 – 24, 30 – 28, 26 – 24
Marist at Auburn (1 – 3): 20 – 25, 25 – 16, 9 – 25, 12 – 25
Belmont at Georgia State (3 – 2): 25 – 23, 21 – 25, 21 – 25, 25 – 19, 21 – 19
