BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University women's volleyball team dropped their home opener Friday night, 3-0 to local foe Milligan University.
Hailee Blankenship finished with 13 kills to lead the Tornado attack.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Milligan 3, King 0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-22)
LOCATION: Student Center Complex; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 1-3; Milligan 6-4
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
- After the Buffaloes took an early 6-2 lead, the Tornado came storming back to tie the set at seven.
- Milligan would then pull ahead 14-8 before the Tornado scored the next five points, forcing the Buffaloes to take a timeout.
- The Buffaloes would again take a lead, 20-16. However, coming out of a King timeout they scored four straight points, tying the set at 20.
- Milligan score the final five points to take the set 25-20.
Second Set
- King started by scoring the first two points, including a service ace by Katie Harless, however Milligan would quickly score four straight points, taking a 4-2 advantage.
- The Tornado were able to work their way back, including a kill by Bailey Fersner to tie the set at seven.
- Milligan was able to continue to hold the lead, eventually taking an 18-11 advantage before the Tornado went on a 7-3 run, with Fersner adding two kills to pull King to within 21-18.
- The Buffaloes would close the set by scoring four of the final six points, winning 25-20 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Third Set
- Three different Tornado recorded kills early in the third set, with Harless, Blankenship and Chloe Clayton contributing to an early 3-0 lead.
- The Tornado held a 5-3 lead when Milligan went on an 8-1 run, taking a 11-6 advantage.
- A 4-0 King run saw them pull even at 15, which led to a back-and-forth where the largest lead was two points, which came when the Buffaloes went ahead 23-21.
- After a Tornado timeout, Blankenship recorded another kill, bringing King to within 23-22.
- Milligan would take the final two points of the set to win 25-22, taking the match 3-0.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Blankenship had 13 kills to lead the Tornado attack, along with a service ace and seven digs.
- Harless had 22 assists to lead the Tornado in that category, along with 11 digs.
- Riley Nelson accounted for three block assists, and two solo blocks on the night.
FOR THE FOES
- Shelby Miller led all players with 19 kills, along with 15 digs.
- Kolbie Greene had 33 assists, as well as 15 digs, tying her with Miller for the team lead.
UP NEXT
- The Tornado will close the weekend on Saturday afternoon when they host Mars Hill University, with first serve scheduled for 2 p.m.
- Milligan will also be in action Saturday, hosting Union College at 11 a.m.
