BOX SCORE
RADFORD, Va. - Despite jumping out to a 2-0 lead, highlighted by a late set two rally, Radford volleyball fell in five sets to Eastern Kentucky (25-19, 26-24, 17-25, 17-25, 9-15) in match three of the Highlander Invitational on Saturday morning at the Dedmon Center.
"We didn't match their intensity after the break," commented head coach Marci Jenkins. "We struggled to make plays when we needed to. We will learn from this match and move forward."
Sophomore Cheyanne James paced the Highlanders' attack, hitting .414 and recording 13 kills. Junior Rachel Wiechecki added a team-best 14 kills, with both players finishing with eight digs. Junior Jena Braden registered a double-double with team-high 27 assists and 10 digs.
Radford (1-1) hit .333 and used a 10-4 run to grab game one from the Colonels, 25-19. James registered five of the Highlanders' 12 kills, and Emma Deininger added three kills and three block assists.
With the scored even at 10-apiece, the Highlanders pulled away with a 10-4 run and grabbed a 20-14 advantage. After EKU (2-0) made it a four-point game (20-16), James helped secure the game-one victory with three of RU's last five points, thanks to an ace and the final two kills.
In a tightly contested set two, Radford rallied from a 23-20 deficit and went on to win 26-24. The 6-1 game-ending spurt was keyed by four straight points, three by James, and catapulted Radford to a 24-23 lead. Following an EKU kill by Ashley Edmond, James slammed one home and then a block by the tandem of Jordan Watson and Deininger completed the comeback.
Behind back-to-back 25-17 victories, the Colonels forced a game five. In game three, Radford raced out to a 4-1 lead, but EKU reeled off an 11-2 run to take control of the game. The Highlanders got within four points (15-11), but the Colonels pushed across five of the next seven points to close out the game. Edmond paced EKU's attack (.231) with six kills.
Following game four, Eastern Kentucky raced out to an 8-4 lead and pulled off the comeback victory with a 15-9 triumph in the deciding set. The Highlanders were able to get within 9-8 after a 4-1 run, but the Colonels closed out the match with a 6-1 run.
Radford will look to bounce back when the squad returns to the court at 5:30 p.m. for the Highlander Invitational finale against Kennesaw State.
