NASHVILLE, Tenn.--A trio of Kennesaw State volleyball players recorded seven kills, but a hot attack from the host Lipscomb squad was too much for the Owls to handle as KSU fell 3-0 (25-11, 25-23, 25-16) on Friday night in Allen Arena.
Juniors Chelsey Denesha and Asjia Stokes and redshirt sophomore Sabrita Gulley each recorded a team-high seven kills for the Owls in the loss. Sophomore Paris Leonce, wearing the No. 14 jersey of her teammate Bianca Rucker, had a match-best 16 digs for KSU.
In the opening set, the Bisons quickly took care of the Owls, hitting .476 in taking a 25-11 win.
In the second set, the Owls jumped out to an early 6-1 advantage, with the spurt capped on a block by Gulley and freshman Callie Churchwell. Lipscomb would come back, tying the set at 11-all and then taking a 20-16 lead. The Owls weren't done fighting, scoring four straight points to tie the set at 20-all. KSU took a 22-21 lead after back-to-back kills from Denesha and Stokes, but a 3-0 spurt gave Lipscomb set point ahead 24-22. A kill by Denesha fought off the first set point chance, but the second one would be converted by the Bisons for a 25-23 win.
In the final set, the Owls scored the first point on an ace by Leonce, but the Bisons scored 11 of the next 15 points for a 11-5 lead. The Owls fall farther behind but pull back within six, 22-16, after Gulley's final kill of the match.. That would be the final point for KSU on the night, as Lipscomb took the final three points for a 25-16 win.
The Owls had three more blocks on the night than the Bisons. Churchwell had a match-high six total blocks for the Owls.
Alex Kelly led Lipscomb with 14 kills, while Katie Rose chipped in 13.
Kennesaw State will wrap up its season Saturday afternoon against Belmont in Nashville. Match time is set for 2:00 p.m. CST.
