By: by KSU Sports Information
BOONE, N.C. - Alyssa Lang and Sara Metroka each had double-doubles and Holly Knight tied the program record for aces in a match with five as the Kennesaw State volleyball team defeated William & Mary, 3-1 (27-25, 19-25, 25-22, 25-22), on Sunday morning.
"Considering the circumstances, we were very happy to be able to play William & Mary this morning," said KSU head coach Karen Weatherington. "Both teams have gone through some adversity that is not their own doing to get to this point. I'm happy we started to build some good chemistry on our side of the net and found a way to pull out a win against a very scrappy team."
The Owls (1-3) pulled out a victory in set one, fighting off three set points to steal the win. With the Owls down 24-22, the Tribe (1-1) thought they had the set won as an attack was heading to the center of the floor. In a desperation move, freshman Keyaira Stevenson extended her arm and stuck her hand flat on the floor to get the pancake. The Owls would finish off the point with a kill by Emily Bean to stay in the set. A lift on W&M saved the second set point for KSU, but after a foot fault on the Owls, the Tribe had a chance again.
From there, Justine Young rose to the occasion. The senior had three straight kills, bouncing her last swing off the block to give KSU the 27-25 win in set one.
The Tribe would take set two, but the Owls bounced back to earn the third set. Down 20-15, the Owls went on a 10-2 run to close the set. A kill by Knight started the run, and kills by Lang served as bookends around a W&M attack error. While the Tribe would take the next two points to go ahead by two, the Owls would not let them score again in the set. A dump by Metroka put the ball in the hands of Knight to serve. The senior responded with an ace to bring the Owls within one, 22-21. After a kill by Lang, Knight served up another ace to give KSU the leas. Lang put KSU on the brink with a kill, and Knight's final serve of the set would come up aces, giving KSU the victory.
The Owls trailed the third set, 16-13, but again rallied to regain the lead. Taking advantage of Tribe attack errors, the Owls went on a 6-1 run, capped by a Lang kill, to take a two-point edge. The Tribe would come back to tie the set two points later, but the Owls would never trail in the match again. A 4-0 spurt was fueled by kills from Lang, Bean and Chadé Martin to give KSU a 23-19 lead. Bean gave KSU a match point try with a kill at 24-21, and though the Tribe fought off the first one, Bean would close it out in style with a kill to give the Owls a 25-22 win in the final set and a 3-1 win in the match.
Bean was one of four Owls with nine kills, joining Knight and Young at the threshold. Metroka had her second double-double on the young season with 39 assists and 12 digs. Lang's 12 kills led the Owls, tacBean led the Owls in digs with 14, while Camille Pedraza joined the crowd in double-figures with 10.
The Owls will be back in action as they open the 2011 home schedule against Winthrop this Friday at 7 p.m. as part of the 2011 Owls Classic.
