BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University women's volleyball team defeated Bluefield State University 3-1 Tuesday night on the strength of a record-setting night at the service line, where the Tornado had 18 aces, with
Chloe Clayton picking up seven of those.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE:
LOCATION: Student Center Complex; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 3-9; Bluefield State 6-10
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
- After the Tornado took an early 4-2 lead. Bluefield State won a couple of points, tying the set at 4.
- King then went on a 7-1 scoring run extending the lead to 11-5, with Clayton racking up two service aces, while Kara Miller had two kills.
- The Big Blue got to within 15-14, but the Tornado ended the set on a 10-1 scoring run, with Faith Morse picking up two aces.
- Clayton had a kill to make the score 23-15, then picked up an ace to get King to set point, which they won on an attack error to take the set 25-15.
Second Set
- Blankenship picked up a kill to push King in front 3-2, kickstarting what would end up being a 5-0 scoring run, with Clayton picking up two more aces, making it a 7-2 Tornado lead.
- Coming out of a Bluefield State timeout, the Big Blue scored a point, after which the Tornado took two points to go ahead 9-3.
- The Tornado lead eventually got to 11-5, but the Big Blue would score eight points in a row to take a 13-11 lead.
- Bluefield State would go ahead 24-21, but a couple of Tornado kills brought them to within 24-23 before the Big Blue scored the final point, taking the set 25-22 and evening the match at one.
Third Set
- King fell behind early, with Bluefield State taking a 3-1 lead before the Tornado would take the next five points, with Morse earning another ace to put King in front 6-3.
- After Bluefield State scored a point on a kill, the Tornado scored the next four points, including a Clayton service ace that stretched the lead to 10-4.
- The Tornado lead eventually reached 16-9 after consecutive aces by Gabri Puertas.
- After the Big Blue pulled to within 17-12, the Tornado scored the final eight points of the set, with four Blankenship kills, along with a set-ending service ace from Morse, handing King a 25-12 victory.
Fourth Set
- The Tornado took an early lead before Bluefield State scored five in a row to take a 10-9 lead.
- The Big Blue were able to work their lead to 14-11 before King scored four points in a row, with Miller, Blankenship and Clayton getting kills, while Morse had a service ace that put King in front 15-14.
- King ended the set in a big way, closing on a 10-2 scoring run that saw Blankenship pick up a pair of kills and a service ace.
- The final blow came with King in front 24-17 when Abigale Jayne picked up one final kill, winning the set 25-17, and the match 3-1 for the Tornado.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Clayton finished with seven aces, leading both teams.
- Blankenship had 14 kills and 12 digs for another double-double.
- Gabri Puertas had 16 digs, with Morse and Blankenship both recording 12.
FOR THE FOES
- Allyson Martin led the Big Blue with 12 kills.
- Kateryna Dashevska handed out 32 set assists, while also leading the Big Blue with 15 digs.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Clayton's seven aces ties her for fourth in program history since becoming an NCAA Division II school.
- As a team, the Tornado had 18 aces, good for fourth in the Division II era.
UP NEXT
- King will return to conference action Friday night when they host Chowan University. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
- Bluefield State will host Virginia Union University Tursday.
