Kokomo, IN – The tenth-ranked Cumberlands volleyball team rallied in their first match defeating Rio Grande 3-2 (21-25, 25-13, 22-25, 25-14, 15-13), before earning a sweep over #13 IU Kokomo (25-20, 26-24, 25-21) Friday night. With the wins, the Patriots improve to 7-1 overall on the year.
Sara Zampedri led the way with 31 kills and 30 digs, while
Brynnley Bryant added 23 kills and 31 digs on the day.
Savanah Jolly dished out 88 assist to go along with 24 digs.
Alana Shiery added five block, while
Morgan Bentel tallied 30 digs.
Patriots Storm Back Against Rio Grande
Brynnley Bryant paced the Patriots with 15 kills and 13 digs, while
Sara Zampedri notched 13 kills and 15 digs.
Savanah Jolly chipped in 14 digs to go along with 49 assists in the match, as
Morgan Bentel tallied a team-high 16 digs.
Josie Newcom and
Alana Shiery combined for 19 kills and five blocks.
The Red Storm took the first set 25-21 to take the 1-0 lead. UC rallied in the second set jumping out to a 5-1 lead. The two teams traded points until the Patriots went on a 5-0 run that was capped off with a Jolly service ace to take a 14-5 lead. A Shiery kill sparked a 3-0 run extending the lead to 18-7. Jolly capped off the set with an ace as Cumberlands took the set 25-13 tying the score at 1-1.
Rio Grande won the third set 25-22, however, the Patriots rallied in the fourth set. UC utilized a pair of three-point runs, that including a trio of kills from Shiery to take a 10-6 lead. The Red Storm cut the lead to 13-11 before Zampedri put a well-place attack for kill to spark a run. Cumberlands scored six unanswered points with three kills from different Patriots to take a 20-11 advantage. The Patriots closed out the set on a 5-1 run, capped off with an ace from
Kendall Yarber to force a fifth set.
Bryant, Bentel, and Shiery each tallied a kill as UC jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the fifth set. Rio Grande pulled within a point, however, Zampedri rattled off four kills as the Patriots extended their lead to 10-7. The two teams traded points, however, UC took the set 15-13 and the match 3-2.
UC Sweeps #13 Cougars Behind Zampedri's 18 Kills
Zampedri paced the way for UC with a season-high 18 kills to go along with 15 digs. Byrant added eight kills and 18 digs, while Bentel tallied 14 digs. Jolly dished out 39 assist to go with 10 digs as
Autiana Wilson tallied a team-best three aces.
The first set opened with the seven ties in the match before IU Kokomo took a 12-9 edge. The Patriots responded with a five-point run that featured kills from Zampedri and Newcom to take a 14-12 lead. The Cougars tied the match, however, a pair of three-point runs, capped off by an ace from Wilson gave UC a 20-15. Cumberlands took four of the final five points to take the first set 25-20.
IU Kokomo jumped out to a 7-3 lead in the second set. The Cougars extended their lead to 18-11, before the Patriots storm back as a Maritna Frangella kill spark a 6-1 run, which was capped off by a Shiery kill to cut the deficit to 19-17. The two teams traded points until UC was trailing 24-22, when Zampedri tallied a trio of kills as Cumberlands took the set 26-24 to extend their lead to 2-0.
Jolly tallied three assists to take a 3-1 in the third set. Cumberlands utilized a pair of three-point runs, capped off a pair of Zampedri kills to take an 11-7 advantage. IU Kokomo went on a 10-3 run to take a 17-14 lead, however, UC responded with five straight points with an ace from Wilson to take a 19-17 edge. Zampedri capped off the set with four kills and a block with Shiery to win the set 25-21 and the match 3-0.
The Patriots return to the court Saturday, August 29, when they compete in day two of the IU Kokomo Tournament. Cumberlands will face #9 Mount Vernon Nazarene at 11:45 a.m., before facing Marian at 4:15 p.m.
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
