Henderson, TN – The (RV) Patriots volleyball team had multiple players set career high's as they defeated Freed-Hardeman 3-2 (22-25, 28-26, 23-25, 25-19, 15-8) on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Patriots improve to 25-3 overall and 4-2 in MSC play.
Sara Zampedri leads the way with 29 kills, a career high for the sophomore as well as the most kills by a Patriot player since at least 2004. The Flero, Italy native finished the day with a .257 attack percentage and 15 digs for her fifth double-double of the year. Kendall Arnold recorded a career high 30 digs, besting her previous career high of 20 digs, and tacking on 21 assists. Juliet Banks chipped in 25 digs to set a new Patriot record of 2,209 career digs, surpassing Kaylyn Suttles (2,201). Allyson Grava notched 18 digs, while Savanah Jolly added 26 assists and 14 digs.
The Patriots notched the first point of the match before the two teams traded points for a majority of the first set. A three-point run featured two kills from Zampedri and a service ace from Banks put the Pats ahead 5-2. After exchanging points again, the Lions pull ahead 13-10 but kills from Gipson, Zampedri, and Alkesandra Augustyniak quickly pushed UC ahead 14-13. A late four-point rally from the Lions saw UC fall 25-22 in the first set.
The second set opened with the Lions recording the first point of the set, but both teams were trading points throughout. The Lions quickly split away with a three-point run before kills from Zampedri and Arnold quickly cut the Patriots deficit to one. Later in the set, a service ace from Ryann Livingston coupled with kills from Allyson Grava and Jayce Brayden saw UC with a 19-18 advantage. At the end of the set, a kill from Zampedri evened the playing field at 22-22. Kills from Allison Moneypenny, Zampedri, and Grava was capped by a service ace from Livingston clinching the set 28-26 to even the score at 1-1.
In set three, Bethel was the first to notch a point but both teams were evenly matched until a four-point rally featured kills from Grava, a block from Alana Shiery alongside a service ace from Zampedri to see UC even the score at 5-5. The Lions quickly jumped ahead, but the Pats continued to rally and took a 16-13 lead off a service ace from Banks and another kill from Zampedri. The Lions were relentlessly and continued to chip at the lead until they surpassed UC, collecting the 25-23 victory, and taking a one set advantage.
The Pats opened the fourth set taking a 7-0 lead with two kills and a block from Zampedri, a kill from Arnold, and a service ace from Banks. The Lions worked quickly to chip away at the deficit, coming within one point of UC. Arnold notched a service ace to elevate the Pats to 13-10, but a relentless Lions squad quickly tied the set at 17 all. A kill from Davey Slaughter paired with a kill from Grava alongside a service ace from Zampedri quickly elevated the Pats. A clutch block from Alana Shiery and Braden gave UC a four-point lead before the Pats closed out the set and secured a 25-19 victory forcing a fifth set.
The fifth set was as close knit as the rest of the match, seeing UC jump ahead first with a kill from Zampedri. The Lions quickly worked ahead with a 3-1 lead before kills by Shiery and Zampedri evened the set. A block by Zampedri and Shiery and another pair of kills from Zampedri elevated UC to a 7-4 lead. The Lions were persistent once again to tying the score at 7-7 before the Pats went on a hot streak, seeing kills from Rayne Manning, Shlery, Savannah Jolly, Gipson, and Braden to secure the set 15-8 and the 3-2 victory for the Pats.
Patriots will be back in action inside the UC Volleyball Complex on Tuesday, October 8, to host Campbellsville University for another MSC match-up. The match is set for 7:00 p.m. (EST).
For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics. Please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter- @UC_Patriots and @UCPatsGameday, Instagram- @UCPatriots, TikTok- @ucpatriots, Youtube- Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.
