SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Tornado outlasted a tough Converse team Tuesday night to pick up another Conference Carolinas win. Three different Tornado had double-digit kills, while
Hailee Blankenship and
Claire Wilson both had 20+ digs.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: King University 3, Converse University 2
LOCATION: Tom & Tracy Hannah Gymnasium; Spartanburg, S.C.
RECORDS: King 12-7, 7-2 Conference Carolinas; Converse 3-14, 3-5 Conference Carolinas
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
- The Valkyries took the first set 25-19 despite Blankenship and Julie Ward both recording three kills, with Ward adding eight digs.
- King never led in the set, though they never trailed by more than eight points, and closed the gap to two points on multiple occasions.
- The largest Tornado run came late in the set, when Georgia Davis had two consecutive kills, along with a set error by Converse that brought King to within 24-19.
Second Set
- The second set was the complete opposite, with King throttling Converse.
- The Tornado padded the stat sheet, with Blankenship recording six kills and five digs, while Ward and Davis both had three kills, with Davis adding a team-high six assists.
- King started to pull away at 4-3, when they went on a 3-0 run, with Claire Wilson recording a service ace and Blankenship picking up two kills.
- The Tornado went on another run a short time later, scoring six straight points to take a 19-8 lead.
- King closed out the set on a 12-2 run, with a litany of Converse errors to go along with a kill from Davis and a service ace from La Mendola.
Third Set
- The Valkyries jumped out to an early lead in set three, but the Tornado came storming back, tying the match at 12 on an attack error before pulling ahead to take the set on a kill from Davis.
- Davis finished the set with four kills to lead the team, along with three set assists.
- Kara Miller had two solo blocks in the set, including one at 16-14 that assisted the Tornado in pulling away.
Fourth Set
- The fourth set was a back-and-forth affair, with four lead changes and nine ties.
- King got a solid run early in the set, scoring four unanswered points, thanks in part to a kill from Allie Zimmerman.
- After the Tornado ended up with a 12-9 lead, Converse came back and tied the match at 14 before pulling ahead for good.
- The Tornado closed the gap to 23-20, but couldn't complete the comeback, forcing a decisive fifth set
Fifth Set
- Neither team was able to pull away in the final set, with the score tied until late in the set, when King took a 13-12 lead on a setting error by Converse.
- Coming out of a Converse timeout, Ramsey picked up a massive block to give the Tornado set point, forcing the Valkyries to call timeout.
- Coming out of the second timeout, Ramsey delivered a thunderous kill to close the match out.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Three separate Tornado had double-digit kills, led by 16 from Blankenship. Ramsey added 13 and Ward had 11 kills.
- Claire Wilson had a season-high 24 digs, making her one of two Tornado to have 20+ digs, along with Blankenship, who had 21. Ward just missed making the 20 dig club as well, finishing with 19.
FOR THE FOES
- Anna Rabon and Jasmine Finkley both finished with 11 kills for the Valkyries, while Elizabeth Yohe added a team-high 30 digs.
UP NEXT
- King will be back in action Wednesday when they take on Lincoln Memorial at 7 p.m
- Converse takes the court again Friday against Belmont Abbey.
