Bishop volleyball rallies to take five-set thriller at Methodist

Fayetteville, NC - North Carolina Wesleyan's volleyball squad earned a thrilling come-from-behind 3-2 victory over USA South rival Methodist University on Wednesday night in Fayetteville.  Down 2-0 in the match, the Bishops rallied to win three straight to remain in a tie for second place in the conference standings. Senior co-captain Sydney Bens (pictured) paced Wesleyan with 13 kills and eight digs.  The Battling Bishops are now 13-6 on the season, 6-2 in league play.

The Monarchs (10-9, 4-5 USAC) took the first set 25-20 behind the strong serving of Melissa Mott.  Tied 11-11, Mott helped Methodist push five straight points to take a 16-11 lead.  The Monarchs went on to lead by as many as eight at 22-14, and the Bishops would not recover en route to a 1-0 deficit.

In the second set, the two squads found themselves tied 21-21 before two crucial attack errors and a ball-handling error gave the Monarchs a 24-21 lead.  The Bishops were able to fight off two game points, but MU's Laura Gilbert ended the set with a kill for the 25-23 win and 2-0 match lead.

The third set saw the Bishops climb back into the match with a 25-18 win. Wesleyan recorded its highest hitting percentage of the match to that point with 15 kills against just two errors.  NCWC trailed 5-4 early in the set, but an Alyssa Balzano kill followed by a Monarch attack error gave the Bishops the lead at 6-5, and they did not trail again.

Wesleyan fell behind in the fourth set 17-12 but fought back to force a 21-21 tie.  The two squads then traded points before NCWC finished out the game with three straight points thanks to two kills by Brittany Insley and one by Bens to seal the 25-22 victory.

In the fifth and deciding set, the Bishops jumped out to an 8-3 lead after the Monarchs struggled offensively, committing five attack errors in their first seven attempts.  Methodist got no closer than three points the rest of the way as the Bishops tallied seven kills against just one error for the 15-8 set win and 3-2 match victory.

In addition to Bens' performance, Insley finished with 15 kills, six digs, and six blocks. Leslie Hassell and Balzano combined for 17 kills, while freshman setter Mackenzie Tingle notched 45 assists.  Sophomore Kelly George anchored the defensive effort with 20 digs.

For Methodist, Alyson Averitt and Sara Yeatman had 19 and 17 kills, respectively. Mott recorded 33 assists, while Kelsey Yates turned in a game-high 28 digs.

Wesleyan will take a short break from USA South action on Wednesday night when Salem College visits Rocky Mount.  Game time is slated for 7:00 p.m. in Everett Gymnasium.